The Little Hawk: Frozen Fire
by AvaEobane
Summary: There are flames inside of them. Flames that nearly destroyed them. Revenge or hatred - if love justified them, it was alright, correct? The third part of The Little Hawk deals with serious problems which is another challenge for anyone involved. Third Part of The Little Hawk-series
1. 75: A summer day

**Chapter 75: A summer day**

* * *

Welcome to the third edited part of this fanfiction.

I would write more but I am quite sick right now and pretty tired.

Reviews and encouragement would be nice and appreciated.

* * *

It was the 30th of May when the First Lady entered the meeting. Everyone had been waiting for her husband but even the Drachman ambassadors snapped into attention as she crossed the room. She wore her dress uniform and her long hair was up in a tight bun – as usual. "Good morning, gentlemen," she said as she took place on her husband's chair.

"Madame Llewellyn," a Drachman man said. "I expected your husband… we all did…"

"He has some important business to attend," Charlotte said. "But I am informed about everything."

She didn't mention, however, that the 'important business' everyone but her had to attend consisted of a football match of Nick, a ballet show of Laila and Victoria's first race and while Roy and Bendix cheered Nick up and Olivier had dragged Jade, Phil and the twins' other halves to the stadium, Leroy had decided to attend Laila's dance show with Riza, Maes and Gracia. In her opinion, sport events were a good reason for missing out international meetings of highest importance and she scoffed at her bad luck because she had lost the game in the morning and so she was force to attend the boring conference.

"Alright, Madam," the Drachman man said with a bow. "I hoped that General Armstrong would be present but as I can see, she is missing today too. I hope she will be there for the next meeting."

Charlotte nodded in sympathy. "My daughter-in-law said that she is really sorry but she has also some really important business to attend," she said while she cleared her throat. "Well, gentlemen, I think that we should start the meeting because I would like to catch a little bit of sun before it gets dark."

* * *

"…ah … that's life how it should be!" Roy exclaimed while he let the sunlight tickle his face. "A good match, a nice bowl of ice cream and cards for the best places! What could I want more right now?"

"You could tell your son that he should stop staring at my innocent daughter if you want him alive for the next few years," Maes threatened with a hidden smile. "He may be family but I still wouldn't forgive him!"

"Do you honestly think that Laila and Vicky would let you hurt their little brother?" Roy asked while he put on his sun glasses to stay undercover. "I warn you once because we are friends, Hughes: you don't mess with my kids because if they don't take the matter into their hands, I will take care of it!"

"Understood," the other black-haired man said before he slung one arm around Bendix' shoulders. "You seem so stiff today, buddy," he said. "Care to tell us what happened? Or is it because of your dearest wife's appointment at her doctor's today?"

The blond man rolled his eyes. "It's just for the confirmation," he said. "We know that she is pregnant because it was pretty hard not to get it. I am just a little bit worried how her behaviour might change."

"You mean…" Roy's eyes widened in shock as he stared at his superior.

"…mood swings?" Maes whispered.

"Exactly," Bendix said while the sunlight let his hair glow like pure gold. "Riza and Gracia hadn't such big trouble with that … but I remember Aunt Augusta when she was pregnant with Alex. The woman made everyone cowering under their beds in fear – even her husband! And from what I heard about mama, she was really terrible too. And Liv is like mama in many aspects…"

"I think that I should think about leaving the country for a very long trip…" Roy muttered. "I mean … she can barely keep herself from strangling me when she isn't pregnant and under the influence of mood swings. I don't want to get to know what she might do if she under the control of her hormones."

"Didn't you say that your aunt was especially calm while she was pregnant with Jade and Phil?" Maes asked while he patted his best friend's shoulder. "And even our violent Lynn was suddenly peaceful and cute … well, as long as she had her liquorice. If it was eaten by someone, it was a different story. So maybe, Olivier will be calm and cute as well … even though I have trouble to imagine this when I am completely honest…"

"And she always needed hugs and would cry if she wouldn't get them," Roy remembered. "Ah yes, those were funny times. I remember your face when she walked up to you and demanded a hug, Maes."

"Hey – I spent years of running away from her moods as a teenager. It was a little strange to think that she would demand a hug suddenly from me since she had beat me up half a year before because I had taken one of her books before asking before!" his best friend defended himself. "Got that, Roy?"

"So the alternatives are violent and sweet," Roy summed it up for Bendix. "Since you are a nice guy, Ben, I wish you the best."

"Well, there is always the possibility that she won't be affected by it at all," Maes said optimistically. "I am sure that you will somehow survive it. I mean … her father and your father survived it too…"

"Dad always said that there were times when he really feared for his life," Bendix muttered.

"That's normal," the other man said cheerfully. "I mean … it is bad when she wakes you at three o'clock in the morning to send you to the store because she wants something but all in all … it's a great experience and while our little Roy here just lived through it once, I had the pleasure twice and I never regretted any second of it."

"What about the time Gracia hit you with that pan?" Roy asked innocently.

"You can't regret something when you are knocked out!" Maes exclaimed while he walked away.

"It wasn't that bad," Roy told Bendix who had gone pale suddenly. "She just hit him really lightly because he had been a fool and forgotten to get Elicia from her ballet class. That was everything."

"Dad!" Nick yelled as he spotted his adoptive father and ran up to him. "You really came!"

Roy chuckled. "The deal was sitting in an office where it is always way too hot or watching your match," he smiled. "I think that everyone can understand our decision!"

* * *

Victoria was always easy to spot, no matter how big the crowd around her was. She was exceptionally tall for her age and her long hair was like a bright flame. She had violet ribbons in her hair that was bound to two bouncy tails and she wore a purple shirt.

"She looks totally focused," Jade said cheerfully.

"Since we came here and skipped the meeting, she should be concentrated," Olivier replied while she pushed her way through the crowd. "Were you ever here before, guys?" she asked while she looked around and an annoyed expression appeared on her face.

"I used to dance as a teenager," Jade stated with a shrug, "and even though I was pretty good, I never danced here."

"I was here for a football match a year ago," Bea said friendly as usual.

"Me too," Phil said.

"You went together, genius!" Jade hissed and flicked his forehead.

"No need for so much aggression between you two, twins," Claudio chuckled.

"There comes our little girl!" Jade said and smiled friendly at Victoria.

"You … you really came?" she asked in disbelief.

"Of course!" Bea said. "We promised you that we would come, so here we are, Victoria!"

"That makes me happy," the girl stated with a happy glint in her violet eyes.

* * *

"I just hate over-ambitious mothers!" Riza muttered darkly while she watched Laila dancing on the stage. Her daughter had a solo, like always, and it annoyed the sniper that some idiots accused her little sunshine of abusing her great-grandfather's name.

"I hate them too," Gracia said while she gently patted the blonde's shoulder. "Stay cool … you know that they are just jealous because their daughters aren't as gifted as ours."

"But Laila always takes it way too seriously!" Riza sighed.

Gracia sighed deeply before she took a few photos. "Every normal mother hates those over-excited women but all of us have to put up with them because we cannot kill them," she said. "And Laila is too smart to let those things bother her, you see?"

"Thanks, Gracia."

"No big deal, Riza."

* * *

"…and the first goal was scored by Nick Hamilton, the boy with the number 11!" the speaker said.

"That was really a great idea of him," Bendix said. He was the one who knew the most about the game Nick was playing at the moment because he had been a quite successful football player in his youth as well but he had stopped playing when he had joined the military.

"My son, you know, my son!" Roy declared proudly.

"I guess that this strategic genius is more a Hawkeye-gene," Maes said with a grin. "I can remember both Serena and Lynn outmatching you on terms of tactics…"

"Yeah – but they cheated, both of them cheated and that's the only reason why they won!"

"Keep yourself telling this, mate," Maes said amused.

* * *

Victoria flew across the track and passed the last girl who had been in front of her. Her feet beat onto the ground beneath her as she became faster and faster. She was the fastest girl in her school but she was ambitious enough to go for the reputation as the fastest girl in town. She concentrated on putting her feet properly on the ground but suddenly, she lost her concentration and tripped.

The whole stadium fell silent for a second.

The girl on the ground coughed as she inhaled dust and got back to her feet before she continued to run with her bleeding knees and hands. Everyone saw that her steps lacked their former power but she was still fast and caught up with the others again.

"That's pure madness!" Jade exclaimed while she left her seat and watched her niece's run.

"Don't underestimate her, Jade. She is much stronger than most people give her credit for," Olivier said calmly. "She promised herself that she would win this competition. We don't have to worry. She will make it. Look at her: she nearly got the first one again."

"But she has to be in pain!" Claudio said worried. "She is wounded, General Armstrong!"

The blonde just chuckled. "That's barely a scratch for her," she replied bored. "I would be worried too – if it were something serious. She tripped because of that stupid brat who pushed her. All these girls want the title and I find that it is really amusing that they don't hesitate to make each other trip – even at such a young age they are already willed to cheat to win … and after all: it is just the yearly competition. There will be another chance."

* * *

Nick hesitated for a second and directed his gaze onto the sky above him. "Run and fly, Vicky, you can beat them all," he said before he continued his own game. He never knew how he knew that his sister needed his support but somehow, he was never wrong. And she was his sister, his beloved older sister. It was only natural for him to cheer for her inwardly when he wasn't able to watch her with his own eyes.

He saw the ball approaching and stopped it before he headed for the goal of the rivalling team.

* * *

Victoria bit her lip while she continued to run.

Her knees were hurting and she felt like someone had pierced them. The pain was overwhelming but she had her pride and her pride didn't allow her to give up just now. She was the descendant of many great people – and she was sure that no one of her ancestors would have given up after such a little injury. Her fingernails pierced into her hands as she flew across the track. She had caught up with the idiot in front of her and she took her last remaining power to surpass her.

The sense of being a Hawkeye just didn't allow her to lose this race.


	2. 76: New moves IV

**Chapter 76: New moves IV**

* * *

Claudio carried Victoria as they left the car. The girl's injuries had started to fester because of her constant refusal to let anyone treat her wounds. Olivier had shrugged and told Jade that Victoria had to learn – and if it had to be the hard way, no one could change anything. After the last race Phil had cleaned the wounds but it looked still really painful and no one understood why Victoria had been that stubborn even though Jade had the suspicion that the girl was too much like Lynn who had had the same stupid attitude – according to Jade it was stupid to attended the last physical test with a broken wrist but that had been Lynn's usual attitude: no matter how much it hurt, she would do it.

"I hope that the others left a little bit food for us!" Phil muttered while they entered the _Golden Dragon_.

"Since Roy is there, I wouldn't be sure about that," his sister said teasingly as she nudged his side and grinned widely. "Alright, there they are."

"…and here comes our last champion!" Roy exclaimed while he stood up. "How was it?"

"What happened to your knees, Vicky?" Riza asked worried as she spotted the injury.

"That's nothing," the redhead said dismissively. "Some stupid brat tripped me and I got hurt a little bit but it is no big deal. It will heal soon enough."

"It looks painful," Elicia said friendly. "Are you sure that you don't need a doctor?"

But Victoria didn't even listen any longer. Her eyes were trained on the fresh stitches on her little brother's temple. "What the hell happened to you, Nick?" she asked.

"Victoria, language," Riza scolded while she sighed inwardly. As the most mature and smartest child, the little redhead (who was much taller than Laila) read books Riza didn't approve of but it was hard to keep Victoria away from any books, so her language wasn't as clean as it used to be.

"Sorry," the girl muttered while she glared at her brother.

"I just ran against the defender of the other team and his head was harder than mine," Nick shrugged while he smiled cheerfully at his twin. "It's no big deal, Vicky. Such a little scratch isn't too bad for me."

Laila sighed deeply. "Is it a twin thing that you got injured on the same day?" she asked.

"Probably, yeah," Jade said as she sat down next to her cousin. "But don't worry, Laila. Twins are usually way too awesome to get lethal injuries on the same day."

"She is totally right there!" Phil chuckled. "My big sister knows what she's talking about!"

Everyone looked at Jade who sat on her place with the same calm and serene expression she had been wearing for weeks now. Her way to dress had stayed the same. She still wore more black than anyone else and her hair was still short even though she tied it often back to a messy ponytail which was a little bit on the left side of the back of her head. Her bang on the left side had gotten longer too and touched her chin while it framed her face.

"Ah, don't flatter me all the time, Phil," the older sister chuckled. "I am not that great…"

"Such an innocent little face and yet such a liar…" Olivier smirked amused. "You know that you are great, Jade."

"Don't call me a liar, Olivier," Jade laughed and she sounded so happily. "I really don't think that I am that great. I am just … a normal state alchemist."

"Isn't that already a contradiction?" Charlotte chuckled. "As far as I can remember, all the state alchemists have these titles because of their skills…"

"Well, let me correct myself," Jade grinned. "I am pretty normal – considering that I am a state alchemist and I really like it that way."

"Modesty doesn't suit you, Aunty Jade," Laila exclaimed. "You are a great person!"

"Yes!" Elicia, Nick and Victoria agreed.

Rachel, Helena, Frederic Charles and Gregor Martin clapped their hands in agreement with their older siblings. Frederic and Gregor looked more like their father while their older sister looked exactly like their mother Gracia. The both twin teams were getting along pretty good and Gracia often watched the girls when Riza was at work while the older children were at school.

"Mo…_modesty_!" Rachel brawled proudly. She was a fast learner when it came to languages and clung more to Nick while Helena adored Laila and Victoria. Roy sometimes swore that Rachel would end up as a tomboy like her late aunt Lynn or Jade while Helena would follow Kay's way and end up as a heartbreaker because everyone would fall for her.

"Great, Rachel!" Nick announced before he tickled her gently. "That was really fast!"

"Mama … daddy … _car_!" his little sister declared while she seemed to be swollen with pride.

"Car!" her twin sister Helena repeated while she clapped her tiny hands. It had been her first word ever and she was still pretty proud when she could throw it into a conversation. She was – according to her great-grandfather – the pride of Charlotte who was a known car lover.

"Great," Charlotte said while she ruffled the girl's golden hair.

"Such a smart girl," Bendix smiled.

"Lele smart!" Frederic brawled. He was especially close to Helena and Charlotte was already planning the wedding of Helena Elizabeth Hawkeye-Mustang and Frederic Charles Hughes because her long experience had proven that childhood crushes were often the one true love.

"Freddy just spoke!" Elicia said while she proudly patted her little brother's head.

Leroy used the second of distraction to announce his choice. "I am retiring and as my last decision, there will be a democracy in Amestris form now on," he said calmly.

Roy dropped his spoon. "What?" he asked, unsure if he had heard correctly.

"We are retiring," Charlotte said smiling, "and Leroy is making Fuhrer's order #1001 public beforehand. It was the last order my father had considered before the day a certain spineless scum with a name that starts with **Ha** and ends with **Kuro** murdered him from behind."

"So, we will have a democracy soon?" Olivier asked while she smiled proudly at her godparents.

"Yes," Leroy stated friendly. "The time was right … the parliament holds an election next month and as far as I know, they need still candidates for the new position as chancellor. The military won't disappear, that's clear. It gives so much work to the people and I can't take it away. No, there will be no Fuhrer any longer. There will be a Foreign Minister to take care of the issues we have with one of our neighbouring countries. Drachma is still against us."

"I am sure that you will find a fitting person for this post," Claudio said. He had never had any trouble with Drachma since his country was separated from the aggressive country by Amestris.

"I think so too," Olivier said while she nodded seriously. Drachma was her personal opponent number one and there weren't many things she wouldn't do to annoy the other country.

Roy looked at her. It wasn't a question that he would try to become chancellor and he knew that Olivier could be his biggest rival since she was still very popular in the Northern Area. Of course, she had protected the northern grounds for years and something like that stuck in the minds of the people. If he wanted to make it, he would have to find a way to prevent her from trying it too.

* * *

It was day two after the unexpected retirement of Fuhrer Grumman and the First Lady and the new first-in-command, General Armstrong-Llewellyn, waited for her new subordinate, Major General Roy Mustang. She sat in her office and stared down at the yard before she turned around. "Finally," she said and sounded a little bit annoyed. "I came to a decision," she announced.

"That was to be expected," he replied crisply.

"I won't run for chancellor," she said calmly.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me, Mustang: I won't try to become chancellor," she said. "I calculated it all last night when Ben was already asleep. If I decide against an application as chancellor, it would take a miracle from keeping you away from the post. It would be even harder if someone who is pretty popular in the North would decide to support you a little bit." She shrugged. "I will leave everything to you … under one single condition, Mustang." She inhaled deeply and looked straight at him. "When you make it, I want to be Foreign Minister. Leave the whole stuff about foreign relationships to me. I know more about leading an army than you and I claim the honour for establishing an era of peace for the country and everyone around us for myself."

He gulped. "That's even harder to take than the challenge I expected," he muttered.

"Believe me, Bendix was close to assuming that my pregnancy already made me go insane when I told him that I won't run for chancellor," Olivier said as she extended her hand to shake his. "But I really don't think that it would be responsible from me to run a campaign for becoming chancellor while I have to take care of myself and a baby…"

"Right, you told us that you are pregnant yesterday…" Roy shook her hand carefully, afraid to hurt her because the black-haired man had heard of her husband's high skill when it came to beating someone up … and since his chances of becoming chancellor were considerably higher with his face intact, he just decided that he wouldn't risk it.

"Don't be jealous, Roy. You have already five children," she chuckled. "Well, since you are leaving now could you please stop by later again? I suddenly want to eat sweet potato fries…"

He stared at her. "Don't tell me that you already started with your cravings!" he yelled.

She glared at him. "Could you please speak in a usual volume around my baby?" she asked.

* * *

"Hey-ho, Ben, my man!" Jean said while he ran into his uncle. "You … um … don't look so great…"

"I had a terrible, terrible dream this night…" the older man shuddered. "I honestly don't know where this image suddenly came from but … I dreamt of a baby who looked like Alex…"

"Oh well, I can understand your face," Jade said. She had caught up with the both blond man and walked now between them. "As much as I like him, he scares me whenever he takes of his shirt."

"And the sparkling…" Jean sighed deeply. "How does it come that Olivier doesn't do it too, Ben?"

"The ability to sparkle is a male trait in this family," Bendix shrugged. "Hey – there is Roy!"

Jade grinned widely as she spotted her cousin and hugged him tightly.

"Jade … be a good girl and allow me to stay alive for some more years, yes?" he asked.

"You are really no fun!" she exclaimed.

"I know, Stormy, because you keep telling it for years," he said while he patted her head, "and you, Ben, you should make sure that your wife gets some sweet potato fries soon because she seemed to be about to go on a murderous rampage if she doesn't get some soon. I barely made it out alive…"

"Ah, I will take care of her," Bendix said before he hurried away.

"Sweet potato fries?" Jade raised an eyebrow. "Yesterday she was craving rice and curry…"

"Does anyone know how far she is along?" Jean asked. "I mean, she is still very slim … maybe a little bit curvier than before but it's still no big difference…"

"Two months," Jade stated while she toyed with her pocket watch. While most of her male colleagues kept it in the pocket of their pants, she kept it in the pocket of her jacket and the silver chain laid across her left breast. "Honestly, guys, don't bother her so much. She has more than enough to do without two fools who keep asking random questions…" She looked at her cousin. "How is Vicky, by the way?"

"It still hurts when she walks but she is still content because she won her title and the races."

"She is such an ambitious little girl!" Jean exclaimed. "And she will be beautiful one day!"

"Hey there," Rebecca said as she passed them. "Jade – I need you and Bea. I decided that you will be my bridesmaids and we will go to get dresses for you today. I know that you have to work but I called the first-in-command and she said that it is okay because everyone before me did that stuff during the time at work too and she wants to be fair…"

"I have to say … having a pregnant leader is awesome!" Jean announced. "I mean … she allowed me to go for a walk with Fuery's dog when she saw me and thought that I could need a break!"

"She allowed me to take today off," Jade said unimpressed while she pushed a door open, "but I think that I can't allow myself one day of absence while everyone else it planning to push Roy onto the big chair. I saw the chancellor's office … honestly, for a second I thought about an application of my own."

Roy laughed and ruffled her short hair. "If you join my team, we can talk about a new office for you," he said seriously.

* * *

Izumi stared at the newspaper before she grabbed her phone and dialled a number she had promised herself that she would never dial it. "Roy Mustang!" she yelled. "I believe you owe me an explication!"

_'I see that you read the actual newspaper, Aunty Iz,'_ he said nonchalantly. _'Well, yes, I decided that it would be good for the family if I would run for chancellor. I already spoke with General Armstrong and she ensured me her support during the whole story.'_

"Such a smart woman supports you? What did this world come to?" She inhaled deeply. "Let me speak with Jade now! I know that she is close because she is always around you … just like when you were kids! And right now she owes me some answers!"

A short rustle before Jade's calm voice sounded through the line. _'Yeah?'_ the young woman asked.

"Jade Mustang, could you explain me why you allowed your cousin to run for that post?"

_'He promised me a new office when I help him.'_

"Don't lie to me, Jade. I know that you aren't that corrupted."

_'I am sick of it!'_ her niece suddenly yelled. _'I am sick of your high and mighty behaviour, Izumi. I am sick that you just call when we messed something up according to your philosophy. I am sick that everyone keeps telling me that I am too young to decide anything! I fought a war, people, and it wasn't the oh-yes-let's-use-all-our-state-alchemists-Ishbal-War! It was a war where I was the only state alchemist in general because Phil was needed somewhere else! I was responsible for the lives of hundred of people – and I didn't mess it up. I don't want people to hail me as the Heroine of Lionnenburg or something like that. I just want people to accept that I am no weak little girl any longer. No one can push me still around.'_ She gasped. _'And honestly – who broke Kay's code?'_

"I see that you grew up properly, Jade…"

_'You should it expect from me.'_ The young woman ended the call.

"Tsss…" Izumi chuckled. "It seems like Central has a bad influence on Jade's behaviour. I have to call her mother to remind Stormy where she stands after all the years…"

"Everyone knows that Abby would be happy to hear that Jade finally got to the point where she explodes as soon as someone tries to push her around, Izumi," her brother-in-law smirked, "and I have to say that I liked her attitude too. My daughter is old enough to decide for herself."

She huffed. "You were always way too soft, Alain," she stated as she sat down, "and you were never one who would judge properly as long as he knew that the person to judge had a hard life…"

He smiled friendly at her while he looked at the street in front of her house. "It is because I can see her point," he said thoughtfully. "No matter how hard she tries, she will probably never be acknowledged for herself. She is an extremely skilled alchemist – but she will always be a part of Breeze. She is a good strategic and I doubt that anyone would ever doubt that she is able to lead armies … and still … for the other soldiers she will ever be Roy's cousin. It is hard on her too, Izumi."

* * *

Roy stood in front of the cold and rejecting statue of Kay Victoria Hawkeye Hamilton who had been his best friend and most loyal comrade during the war when she had been still alive. It was still hard to believe that she had died before he had reached his goal … their goal.

"Good morning, Kay," he said while the first rays of sunlight sneaked into the room in Central Headquarters. "I hope you slept well."

He remembered all the days they had laughed together because she had been the soul of their group. It was nearly painful to accept that those times were over.

"Well, I am running for chancellor now, old friend," he told her. "You would have loved it, I guess, all the attention … the good publicity … we are cleaning your name. The people know now who you really were. We can't have them believing that you were a monster. You were human and even though we will never be able to erase what you did … what we all did … we are trying to make the people see both sides. They know the seemingly cruel side … they need to see that the gun was permanently pointed on Charles', Lynn's and Serena's head. You could have refused your orders … and the others would have paid. You were caught … we all were." He sighed deeply. "Olivier Armstrong, you should remember her, is planning something to clean your name. She doesn't tell us what she is doing…"

Kay's distant, cold smile seemed to be a little bit for a moment as a sunray hit her mouth.

"…you know how she is, right?" Roy scratched his head before he turned away. Before he left the room, he looked back at the statue over his shoulder. "Keep an eye on Riza and the kids, will you?" he asked.

* * *

"…finished?" Olivier smirked while she leaned back in her chair. "Please announce the official presentation for the weekend. And I will be there in some minutes. I need to see it … finally…"

She ended the call and got up before she took her jacket. She passed her aide on the way out and waved dismissingly at him. "I am going out as you can see," she declared. "Don't wait for me, alright?"

"Yes, madam," the young man said and she rushed down the hallway.

"You can be really mean," Jade announced as she caught up with her friend. "Where are you going?"

"One of my projects got ready and I need to check if everything is in order," the blonde said, "and I know that I am mean … but that makes me so famous, right?"

"I will escort you," the state alchemist sighed as she closed her jacket. "I am in no mood to see my brother at the moment anyway."


	3. 77: New moves V

**Chapter 77: New moves V**

* * *

The building was huge, Jade thought, too huge for her to feel comfortable. She didn't like wide spaces. She preferred it when she could see everything without any troubles. On the other hand, the building was beautiful and she decided that she would mention that fact if anyone would ask her to give her opinion. She didn't need the attention.

"What do you say, Jade?" Olivier asked while they entered the Helena-Hamilton-Orphanage in Central.

Jade had been Helena's, Lynn's, best friend while the silver-haired woman had been alive and Olivier had come to the decision that Jade's opinion should matter. Usually, Jade was a quiet and composed person. She usually never spoke her mind until she got angry or someone asked … and after her latest outburst in her conversation with her aunt, she would go a long time without getting too angry.

"It suits her certainly," Breeze Soul said. "She would have loved it … she liked the grandeur and the fame something like that would have brought her … she was a little bit crazy sometimes…"

Her voice was caring and soft for a moment and the blonde knew that this was the true Jade. The younger woman was no warrior but still she fought because it was necessary … she had understood that the sacrifice of few were necessary for the good of everyone. And still, sometimes she had taken it too far … that was why she was nothing but a hard shell sometimes.

"I understand," Olivier said and understood that Jade might be her only real female friend but that Jade had had other friends before … friends who had died and abandoned her along the way. "I am happy," she added with an afterthought while she started to walk around in the building. "I read files about her and tried to figure out what she would want … and this thing was the best idea I had. She was … well … unique and still, one of her strongest points was obviously her will to help…"

Jade's fingertips touched the beautiful portrait of Lynn on the wall and her face betrayed her sadness. She had tried so hard to forget what had happened. She had told herself that Lynn wouldn't want her to cry … but she felt how tears formed in her eyes. She wiped them angrily away. Jade never cried.

"You miss her, huh?" Olivier asked while she rested on hand on Jade's shoulder.

"She was my best friend," Jade said, "even if I was never big in showing feelings. I … I _do_ care…"

"I know," Olivier said while she dragged her into another room. "And I care too."

* * *

"Alright," Rebecca said while she put down the boxes in Roy's office. "I already planned your way to become chancellor, Mustang. Jean and I made some buttons last night and I had Sheska writing your first speech. You will hold it this weekend. I made an appointment with Olivier and she was really happy that you will use her offer. Furthermore: you should start to pack your stuff. The election is in sixty days and it will be hard on all of us – so man up and pack your things before I have to do it!"

Rebecca was annoyed that Roy had told the public that he would run for chancellor three days ago and still hadn't done anything to achieve this goal … because this was basically war out there.

"Aren't you supposed to be planning your wedding?" Riza asked while she leaned against Roy's desk.

"Already finished," her best friend replied. "Jade's dress was the last point on my long, long list."

It was unusual for her to be that fast … but on the other hand, she had dreamt of that day for _years_.

"Well, good news, Roy," Jean said as he ended his call. "Grandmother travelled to the West for the weekend and tells her old supporting movement that they should support you now."

Everyone in the room knew what that meant. The name Llewellyn … in the Western Area and many other places it still meant _progress_, **_democratisation_**. It meant that things would change … become better … and the people on Roy's office also knew that this meant that every former supporter of Charlotte Llewellyn would support him from now on … and even though her Golden Days had been in the last century, she was still very popular, especially among the movement for the rights of the women and other organisations that wanted more freedom for everyone.

"That … that would be … wonderful…" Roy chocked out while Rebecca used her fingers to calculate how much votes such a move of Charlotte's would bring.

"Don't mention it," the First Lady said. She stood in the door while she carried a red box with her personal items. Other than most soldiers, she preferred to organise everything herself. "You are like a grandson to me after all … and I need Riza to follow me, right?"

"Charlotte, you are amazing!" Rebecca announced while she hugged the older woman.

"Darling, they don't call me the Queen of Awesomeness for no reason."

"You are getting cocky again," her husband said while he stopped behind her. He also carried a box but his was emerald green. "Well, we came to say goodbye. We have a new mission now…"

"Right," Charlotte agreed. "And should you need a babysitter, Riza, give me a call."

She had recovered faster than she had been supposed to and the doctors had been shocked. The old lady hadn't been surprised about this development at all. She had been shot before and she always had recovered fast enough to keep herself from missing a party. She wasn't the kind of woman that would lie in a hospital and read a book while everyone else was having the fun.

"I will call you, Jewel," Riza smiled while she hugged her tightly. "Since you mentioned it: I need to go and pick up the kids … they should have finished their school day already…"

* * *

There was a strange line on Victoria's forehead and Riza was confused. Victoria had always been a more-or-less perfect mixture of Kay and Lynn and none of them would have shown her annoyance this way. Kay would have told the world what was annoying her and Lynn would have done the same.

"What happened?" Riza asked while they drove back home. "Vicky, tell me … please."

"Nothing important," the redhead stated while the line grew a little bit.

"She broke Jacqueline Weisman's jaw because the stupid brat insulted daddy," Nick said calmly.

Riza's eyes widened. "You did _what_?" she asked.

"The stupid brat had it coming, Riza," Victoria muttered. "I never liked her and when she said what she said, I simply saw red and punched her."

"That was awesome, mommy," Laila said cheerfully as always. "Vicky heard the comment, turned around and just punched the brat. I would have aimed for the nose, to be honest, because that would have inflicted a more permanent damage…"

"I will remember it for the next time," the redhead stated nonchalantly.

"Girls, I don't like your violent tendencies at all," Riza sighed as she shook her head at them. "But I believe that it is time that you start a new sport: martial arts. I talked already with Jun Li and she said that she would train you."

Victoria licked her lips. "More time for Laila to adore Cai," she stated.

* * *

**Chapter 78: Secrets uncovered**

* * *

"Well, if you really want to, little sister, bring it on," Madame Abigail Mustang-Tempest said with a wide smirk as she looked at her younger sister. "To tell the truth, I was getting bored since I had nothing to do in the last few years since you moved to the West. And we used to have so much fun."

Izumi nodded while she carefully watched the other woman. The thing about Abigail was that one of the few fighters and alchemists Izumi actually never had been able to beat – because her older sister was the one who had taught her. The Mustang-family had always been rich and Abigail had feared that someone could kidnap Izumi to demand money from their parents, so she had trained the girl for years. Abigail was four years older and had way more experience, so Izumi knew what she was up against. Abigail's black hair was held back in a beautiful Cretan braid and she wore a red dress.

"How much is allowed in our little battle?" Izumi asked while she grinned.

"Everything but killing the other one," Abigail said casually. "And if you could refrain from destroying my house, I would be happy too. Should you win, I owe you a favour, no matter what."

"It's mean to rub into my face that I never got you down before," Izumi sighed. "But on the other hand … it has been a while and even the great Abigail Mustang should get rusty at her high age of … what was it? … are you really forty-one by now? Tss … you are getting old."

"Just because we are using alchemy this time around, I wouldn't be so cocky if I were you, sister dear," Madame Mustang smirked and her grin was similar to her nephew's.

"Why don't you just give up before I can hurt you, old lady?" Izumi taunted. "Face the facts: forty-one means that you aren't that agile and fast as you used to be, older sister…"

Abigail twirled around and grinned widely. "You see, Izumi, you are not the only one with an extraordinary huge talent for alchemy," she said. "It runs in our family like the dark hair … and I am older than you as you just pointed out and had more time to study, wouldn't you agree?"

"That would be true," Izumi said while she waited for the right moment to transmute something. The problem was that she didn't knew how far Abigail had taken her alchemy by now and since her big sister had always been able to go up against any state alchemist Amestris had ever seen – maybe even against her own children – it was dangerous to underestimate her. It could easily be the last thing she would ever do because of Abigail's high skills.

"When did you get that shy, little sister?" the older one taunted with a wide grin as she escaped the blow directed at her while jumping back. She was still a dangerous woman and Izumi kept telling herself that one day, Abigail's age would finally catch up with her and force her down.

"You know what they say, Abbs: once bitten, twice shy – and you got me more than once."

"Are you afraid that you might lose your fight again?" Jade's and Phil's mother laughed.

"No – I am juts not especially keen on getting another scar, Abby. You tended to be cruel after all, you remember?"

"I know – but that really shouldn't stop you if you really want me to owe you, sister dear."

"I don't care for a favour as much as I care for the way my head is attached to my body, Abigail. And I tell you that I won't use any alchemy before you start it too. I don't trust you when we are training."

"I wouldn't trust me either," she laughed. "It is possible that I manipulated the alchemistic energy beneath us – and if you would use alchemy now, everything would blow up into your pretty face."

"You are good, true, but I somehow doubt that you would go that far just for a little fight, sister."

"True," Abigail shrugged while she barely dodged a blow. "Well, sister, didn't you have a question?"

"Yes, Abigail, I have a question for you: what the hell are you usually doing? I wonder that ever since Jade and Phil didn't need your attention all the time. First I thought that you would be working but even if you would do that, it would never ever cost so much time. Your research is over since many years, so you can't be doing this either. Since I am a housewife myself, I can also be sure that you aren't doing chores around the house…" Izumi wiped away a hint of sweat on her forehead as she avoided another blow. "So … what are you doing all the time? You aren't secretly a state alchemist, are you?"

Abigail smiled innocently before she stepped back a little bit and folded her hands in front of her stomach. "You really didn't get it?" she asked, slightly disappointed before she inhaled deeply. "I give you a hint. _'And even though Luca had always loved Lena, he had known that fate was not kind enough to let them be happy together.'_ That's the hint – go and figure it out, sister."

Izumi stopped for a second and before she could defend herself, her sister had knocked her to the ground. "That was mean, Abigail!" the housewife complained. "You distracted me!"

"That means that you didn't worked hard enough on yourself," Abigail stated. "Get up, we need to get you back in form. Honestly, if I had been a real opponent, you were **dead**."

"Yes, Mrs Author," Izumi muttered. "Honestly – you wrote the books? The whole An Eternal Love story?"

"I am really surprised that you didn't figure it out earlier," Abigail muttered while she stretched her long legs. "I mean … you knew my way to write and to tell stories since you were born!"

"You always seemed too rational to be a novelist!" Izumi complained. "But honestly, how could you murder Carina? She was the best character you ever created and you killed her! The death wasn't even fitting for her! She was stabbed from behind after so many years … and you were even cowardly enough to kill her on the last page! She died in vain, sister!"

"Stop telling me how I have to write my books, Iz," Abigail hissed, "and really, if you had followed the press, you would know that I am working on a new part. I know that it was supposed a trilogy but I feel that I left too many questions unanswered!"

"But you still murdered Carina! She would have made it out alive if the stupid bitch Ardelia wouldn't have stabbed her from behind!" Izumi said enraged.

"Darling … when was Ardelia ever capable of killing someone that strong that easily, hum?"

* * *

"…perfect!" Olivier exclaimed as she put down her brush and looked around in the room she had just finished. She had taken a day off, knowing that Bendix could handle the things at work, and started to prepare the room for the baby. It had taken the whole day so far and now she was covered in paint and she was quite happy with the outcome. The walls were painted in light blue while the ceiling was white and the baby cradle had the same colours.

"Hey, princess," Bendix said while he hugged her from behind, definitively not caring about any stains of paint on his perfect uniform. "You did a wonderful job here, so I was wondering if you want to go out for diner today. I would cook you something but I am a little bit tired. Mama had me running so many errands today that I had to skip lunch."

"Poor Benny," she said as she gently ruffled his hair. "Well, we can go out for dinner. I feel selfish that you are always doing the work by now while I am so … so useless…"

He sighed inwardly before he kissed her sweetly. "You aren't useless, Liv," he said. "You are amazing. And now – get ready, take a shower and dress fine, alright? We are going out tonight."

"You really think that I am not useless?"

"Stop thinking that way," he said gently. "You are too important to be useless, princess."

* * *

Jun Li felt how the hard work of the previous months finally caught up with her and while she cleaned the living room, she decided to take a little break. She sat down on the couch before she fell asleep. She rolled up like a little cat and rested her head on her hands. She looked quite adorable, like a child.

"Jun-Jun?" Cai asked while he entered the living room where suddenly nothing moved any longer. He had been practicing the chi-detection and had used her as a target when she suddenly had stopped to move around. So he had decided to check on her.

"She is resting, Cai," his grandfather said while he fondly looked down at the fragile woman on the couch. He crossed to her and carefully picked her up. "Could you please open the door to my bedroom for me, Cai? Her own room is much too hot for her to rest there at the moment."

"Of course, grandfather!" the boy skipped over and the old man who was still very fit for his age carried the small woman into the room before he gently placed her on the bed before he brushed back some strands of her dark hair before he took a light cover to place it over her tiny body. Jun Li wasn't tall or exceptionally muscular but she was fast and agile – two traits that had kept them both alive for so many years. He sat down next to her and gently caressed her head. She was strong, in her own way. She wasn't as powerful as her father had used to be but she was especially smart and her sharp mind had them often prevented from getting in trouble. He spotted the faint gleam of gold in her collar and took the necklace into his hand. He remembered the day he had given it to her. She had just recovered from an illness that had barely failed to take her life and he had been so happy when she had returned to her duty. She had been incredibly pale and he had made a point out of avoiding trouble as far as possible because she could have gotten injured and then she would have died.

"Damn you and your stubbornness, Jun Li," he whispered into her ear even though he knew that she couldn't hear it. "If you need a break, just take it. You don't have to ask me for every single step you take, Jun Li. Just on case that you still didn't get it: we are equals now … and to tell the truth: even back in Xing I never considered you as a servant. You are my friend, my one and only friend!"

She still slept ever so peacefully.

* * *

Victoria glared at him and Cai knew that he had missed the right moment to run for his life.

"You … you just told me casually that you ate my last lemon?" the redhead asked. The secret behind her health and her awesome concentration when she worked for school was that she ate lemons without anything else and she got easily annoyed when someone else ate her holy lemons.

"I am sorry, Vicky, but I wanted to make lemonade!" he said as he walked backwards.

"And I needed to repeat the whole sixth century in Creta for History! You messed up my plan!"

"I already said that I am terribly sorry!" he said. "Please – don't punch me, Victoria!"

"Vicky…" Laila appeared behind her with a dark expression on her face. "Do not punch Cai."

"He ate my lemons."

"How can you even eat them? They are … _sour_."

"Easily, big sister: I peel them, open my mouth and chew. No big deal."


	4. 78: New moves VI

**Chapter 78: New moves VI**

* * *

Roy was nervous as hell as he left his car along with Nick who was the only one who was available for the opening ceremony of the orphanage which was dedicated to his late mother. Laila and Elicia had ballet, Victoria was in the stadium to defend her titles once more, Riza and the twins were invited to Rebecca's birthday party/bridal shower and Maes had taken his wife and his boys out for a picnic.

"Finally!" Olivier hissed into Roy's ear while she grabbed his upper arm. "I already thought that you wouldn't come. Well, now that you are finally here – c'mon, Roy and Nick!"

The generous first-in-command of the military wore a plain black dress and a simple pearl necklace while she had wrapped an emerald scarf around her shoulders. Her hair was down as usually but her sword wasn't at her side for once.

"Yes, Madam," Nick said with an ironically bow as he followed her.

"It looks wonderful," Roy complimented as he looked around in the huge entrance hall. "Honestly, you created something amazing, Olivier. How did you keep it a secret from everyone?"

"Easily," she grinned. "I just didn't speak about it with anyone. It was really, really simple to keep all of you distracted from the plans I realised in the background."

"So you tricked us all into believing that you mean no harm, yes?"

"It's new to me that building an orphanage means harm," she replied.

"People could assume that you are plotting something," Roy warned.

* * *

Jun Li was the one woman Jun Yao deeply respected. He had known her since she had been a little kid and he had always admired her strength – physically as well as mental. He remembered very well how her father who had been his personal bodyguard before her had told him about his daughter: _'She is not really fitting for being a warrior, her grandmother said, but I really hope that Lan Li is wrong. I hope that my daughter can follow me one day – but if her grandmother keeps telling her that she is born to be something more than just a simple warrior, it may destroy her character.'_

Jun Yao, however, had to agree with his late sister Lan Li. Jun Li wasn't born to keep an eye on some old man who had become too weak to protect himself. Once upon a time, before she had decided to force herself to become someone she wasn't meant to be, she had been material for a princess and after her father's passing, Jun Yao had thought about adopting her because she had been so fitting for the role as an imperial princess. She had had the fragile beauty, the fairness and the kindness hardly a princess managed to achieve these days … no, she had been too good for everything. The only position which would have challenged her would have been the position as empress.

And he had tried to push her gently in this direction, the direction to her real destination. He had known of his son's crush on her because Lei Yao had never been especially subtle about his feelings but she had never noticed how much he had liked her. She had been focused on the old emperor – and somehow, it had given Jun Yaoa certain degree of happiness that at least one person still cared about him as if he had never gotten old. And Jun Li had cared for him with a devotion and bravery that was unmatched by any other guard's. When they had left the country, she had taken the risk. She had stolen the _poison _from the doctor in the capital and had made sure that no doctor would look to close at the _dead body_ of the old emperor. That she had studied alkahestry had become handy since she had been able to tell everyone that she had checked if he was really dead – and since she had cried like a baby, no one had doubted her words.

Yes, he was lucky to have someone as loyal as her and he thanked it her with keeping her alive by reminding her that she was just human and that times had changed for them. She wasn't below him any longer. They had left the borderlines of social status behind them.

"…grandfather?" Cai sat down beside him while they looked out of the window and onto the city. "You like aunty Jun-Jun very much, right?"

"If it weren't for her, I would have died a long time ago," the old man replied while he patted the boy's head. "She is a really important person to me, Cai, and I hope that you will understand one day why."

"Why did she risk her life and left Xing with you? She had family…"

"Yes, I know that she left her old life behind but I never asked why."

* * *

"…Helena Hamilton was a strong woman. A woman who stood her ground and even when times got rough, she held her head high and walked right through the storm. She was also a loving wife and a good mother for her children," Olivier said. "She lived her own life and when she saw a fault somewhere, she never pointed on other people and told them what they had to do. She always was one of the first to change something … sadly, this wonderful trait of her got her killed two years ago. She was cowardly shot from behind because of her brave attempt to overthrow the corrupt generals who led our beautiful country." She took a short break and looked around in the room before her gaze returned to the statue of Lynn in the middle of the hall. "And to honour her amazing courage and her bravery which reached above the call of duty, I am more than proud to hand over the Helena-Hamilton-Orphanage to the newly founded Ministry for the Youth and the Children."

The applause was deafening since Lynn and Martin as well had been very popular among the people for their soft methods when they had investigated.  
They had been careful and had never hurt the feelings of the victims while other investigator like Henry Douglas who had been finally thrown out of the military after his insane accusation that Jade had murdered Lynn and Martin while being in West City. Roy had been outraged upon hearing this sick accusation while Phil had commented it dryly: _'I always knew that my sister was skilled but I never knew that she can shot two friends of her in Central City while she is in West City.'  
_To Douglas' defence it had to be said that the pressure of the people to find the culprit as fast as possible had been huge.

"Amazing," Roy muttered while he clapped. "I really never would have thought that she can speak like that. This sounds like someone possessed her!"

* * *

Edward stared at his old teacher and her sister while he carefully drew the circle onto the floor.

"And you are sure, Edward?" Izumi asked while she read his notes. "The Cretan Alchemy is different from ours because they never cooperated with amestrian alchemists. They made everything alone for more than three hundred years. It can easily go wrong…"

"I trust the professor," the blonde replied. "I trust her that she wouldn't betray me this way. She was so sincere and serious all the time, I am sure that everything will be alright."

Izumi frowned while she closed her eyes. "Catherina D'Artagan…" she muttered. "There was always something strange about her but I can't remember what at the moment…"

"She was engaged with an amestrian soldier but broke up with him two days before the wedding and ran away – she never told anyone why. Later on, she became one of the few cretan alchemists who have the same level as an average amestrian state alchemist," Abigail said dryly. "Don't look at me like I just told you that I am a genius, Izumi. I am just doing my homeworks."

"We will talk about this one later," the younger sister muttered while she sighed.

"She is definitively very trustworthy since she never showed interest in any conflicts," Abigail said while she nodded at Edward. "So, boy, impress me."

He bit his lower lip before he bent down and his hands touched the ground. There was a bright silver light before a little statue of Izumi appeared on the yard.

The oldest alchemist tilted her head. "Impressive, wouldn't you agree, Izumi?" she stated.

"Impressive is the word I was searching for, yes," Izumi agreed wholeheartly.


	5. 79: Victory

**Chapter 78: Victory**

* * *

Victoria was concentrating hard as ever on the track she would be run in some minutes while she sat on the bench. Her eyes were closed and she breathed calmly while she replayed her last run in training on the very same track. She could still remember the feeling of the ground beneath her and as she opened her eyes again, she knew that she could run it without seeing anything for her ability to remember every step she had taken the day before. She had her long hair bound to bouncy twin tails and as usually, she wore purple ribbons. She also wore a violet shirt, black pants and black knee-length socks. She seemed tiny in comparison to the taller and older girls which surrounded her.

"Who's the little girl?" an over-ambitious mother asked while she straightened her daughter's shirt.

"Victoria Hamilton," the daughter replied. "She has the reputation of being incredibly fast – the fastest girl in Central … but I don't think that she is really had brilliant. She is – after all – very young."

The red-haired girl barely smirked as she got up from her place on the bench. She walked over to the track and stopped behind the sign which labelled her track as the first one which meant that she was the best runner in the field. She stretched her legs one last time before she got into position while she threw a gaze towards her rivals. Some of them did she know and none of them was fast enough to beat her. With another smile, she relaxed. On the track, there was no one who was as fast as her. There was no one who could beat her. She was too athletic to be beaten by another girl.

* * *

Laila and Elicia were out of breath as they stormed towards the stadium while Nick and Cai as football players had more endurance than them and dragged them along. They headed towards the entrance and groaned in frustration when the security man told them that they couldn't go in.

"Have you any idea who we are?" Laila hissed at him. "I am Laila Hawkeye, the great-granddaughter of Fuhrer Grumman, and you refuse to let me watch my sister's competition?"

"And I am Cai Yao!" the Xingese prince exclaimed. "My older brother is Ling Yao, the emperor of Xing!"

"Listen, my friend," Nick said while he looked at the man like his father would have looked at him: honest and with a burning determination. "The girl we want to watch is my twin sister. I just ran away from the party _Olivier Armstrong_ gives for the opening of an orphanage she dedicated to my _mother_. Elicia and Laila ditched their last training before the great show at the opera. Cai ditched his guardian who wanted to tutor him all day – and now you don't allow us to go in?"

Usually, he was the calmest among them but he seemed willed to murder the man if the man would continue to keep him from his older twin sister. Under other circumstances, it wouldn't have been a problem: they would have called someone like Charlotte who would have dealt with everything but the former first lady attended her duties in the Western Area at the moment.

"…you see, young man, the kids are with me," a slow and somehow aristocratic sounding female voice sounded through the dark entrance and the eyes of the security man became huge as he stared at the young woman. She was small and petite but she still radiated huge power and an attitude that told everyone that it wasn't wise at all to mess with her because she could get dangerous. The woman had long black hair that was beautifully styled and held up with a hairclip which resembled a butterfly. Her face was partially hidden behind a red fan which gave an interesting contrast to the black dress with the golden ornaments she was wearing.

"Um…" the young man blushed. "Do I … um … know you? You seem familiar?"

"She is … my step-grandmother!" Cai said hastily. "She was married with my grandfather, emperor Jun Yao, that's why you probably know her. She was in many newspapers, even here!"

"Yes – and after my … um … husband's tragic death, I moved to Amestris," Jun Li said with a deep sigh. "I couldn't stand to stay in Xing where everything reminded me of him…"

* * *

"…you need to run a new record, Vicky," Coach Walker said while he handed a white towel to his best runner who seemed to be a little bit tired. "I know that you are faster – and you proved it in the training more than once. I just want you to go out and to run like the prize are eight kilos of lemons."

She nodded while she rubbed her temples. "I will do my best," she said while she drank from her bottle with lemon-flavoured water. "I won't disappoint you, coach. I will try to make a new record."

He patted her head before he turned to leave. "Just don't get hurt," he said. "Your guardians weren't happy when you got hurt the last time around."

She rolled her eyes. "I know what I am doing, coach," she said calmly. "Could I have, um, a moment for myself … I need to focus on the task in front of me."

"Of course, little star," he said and left.

* * *

Laila made a point out of glaring at any potential opponent of Victoria with passion. The little blonde was already very good at glaring and even though she knew that it was mean, she started to drop discouraging comments on the other girls. Laila wanted Victoria to win because she knew how much her little sister needed this victory.

"…I really don't see a reason why you are so mean, Laila," Elicia stated. "Vicky is the best – that's a fact – and you don't need to attack the other girls this hard. It is not their fault that they have to go up against our favourite runner. And honestly, Vicky is strong enough to make it on her own."

"I am still worried," Nick said while he pushed his way through the crowd. "Vicky is a great runner but if her nerves don't play along she might get serious trouble with her concentration which could cause her to trip again. The last time, the stupid brat pushed her but this time…"

"When do we tell her that we are here?" Cai asked. The little Xingese boy carried a heavy banner in purple and black, Victoria's favourite colours. They had made the banner in secrecy and it read _'Go for gold, Vicky! We believe in you, your biggest fans: Cai, Elicia, Frederic, Gregor, Helena, Laila, Nick and Rachel!'_ because they had assumed that their little siblings would support the redhead too.

They had planned on bringing their younger siblings too but it hadn't been possible because Elicia's father had taken Gregor and Frederic to the countryside along with Gracia while Riza had taken Helena and Rachel to Rebecca's party where nearly everyone was attending.

"We need to stay undercover until the finishing straight, alright?" Nick said. "That is usually the moment she starts to doubt herself and that's when we need to give her new power."

"I agree," Elicia said while she clung to his arm like Laila clung to Cai's.

"Alright –Mission 'Support Miss Lemonette' is on its way," Laila said before the four children disappeared into another crowd.

* * *

Victoria was a firm believer in mental training and before she left her changing room, she touched the necklace she always wore underneath her clothes. It was a double silver chain with two hearts on it: a bigger one and a small one above it. Nick had bought it her in EastCity half a year ago and she always wore it. "Alright," she whispered while she put it back underneath her shirt. "There is a title to win."

She left the changing room while the last few seconds of her favourite song played in the radio and she held her head high as she walked over to her opponents. She knew exactly who she was up against and she also knew that she had beaten half of them with bloody knees shortly before.

"Look who got up from her place in the dirt," the cheating brat from the last competition smirked.

Victoria barely bothered to look at her. "Look who was dense enough to believe that I would care what you say to me," she replied while her red hair shimmered in the sunlight.

"Aren't you a witty little girl?"

"In case you didn't notice: I am taller than you," the redhead said before she turned away from her.

* * *

"She is already out!" Laila exclaimed while her fingernails pierced Cai's upper arm while she bounced up and down. "Look, look! Can you see her too? She stands behind the sign which labels the first track!"

"It was clear that she would be the favourite," Nick said smugly while he looked proudly at his older twin sister. "Honestly, no one can beat her on eight hundred metres. She basically _flies_ when she runs them! It was amazing!

"Technically, Vicky was always too tall to be a runner for the short distances," Elicia stated. "I am sure that she will stay on the longer distances forever to be more successful."

"She is the champion of the Central Area and when she can repeat her amazing achievements today, she will be the champion of whole Amestris!" Laila said euphorically. "Honestly, the girl is barely seven and has more trophies in her room than Aunty Liv decorations on her uniform!"

* * *

"Aren't you scared, Hamilton?" a girl hissed into Victoria's ear as they kneeled down.

The redhead just smirked at her. "I am never scared," she said. "Fear is something to overcome."

The starting signal rang out and the eight best runners in the age of seven from whole Amestris started to run. For Victoria, it wasn't as new as for some of the other girls. It was her stadium. It was her city. It was her audience. And it was her distance. Eight hundred metres requested a certain amount of something she liked to call 'intelligent running' and it was something she mastered. Since she knew the stadium like the back of her hand, she knew how the wind could influence her and stayed in the slipstream as long as possible before she left the field. She heard the distant drum of the cheerleaders from her school somewhere to her left and a faint smile appeared on her face. Fast enough, she brought fifty metres between her and her followers – and the gap between them grew with every passing second. She loved the feeling. She loved being alive.

To run … it was the burning passion flowing right on through her veins and even though she knew that it could get her hurt someday, she would never be able to stop. For her, it meant to be welcome somewhere and it was the feeling that she was always so glad that she came to make a new record. For her, running was the air she breathed, the element of fire which kept her warm on rainy days. Running meant overcoming fears.

* * *

Laila understood what running in this stadium in front of this audience meant to her younger sister. The applause and the beating drums were the soundtrack of Victoria's successful and usually happy life. The blonde had seen her running before and it had always seemed like Victoria's feet weren't really touching the ground. It looked like she was literally flying.

"Go, Vicky, go!" she yelled and she wondered if her sister could hear her.

Nick's knuckles were nearly white from the force he used to hold the banner. "She will win it!" he said enthusiastically. "She will win it for us and herself."

"C'mon, Vicky, c'mon!" Elicia shouted while her right hand held Laila's. "Please! For the love of everything, Vicky – you go, girl!"

* * *

Victoria was surprised as she suddenly heard people cheering her on but as she looked to the side where the audience sat, she spotted familiar faces that held up a banner. She would have yelled back at them but her breath was rare and she couldn't waste it away. But they were right: the sweat and the blood were what made her herself.

She focused on her last few metres and sped up one last time before she crossed the finishing line.

A breath she hadn't known that she had been holding it left her body as she slowly walked some metres to give her heart a fair chance to calm down a little bit before she found herself enveloped by a violet banner without anything written on it.

"Who is our champion?" Laila yelled while she lifted Victoria's fist into the air.

"Vicky!" the others chorused.

"Who won every run today?" Cai shouted while he hugged the redhead tightly.

* * *

Olivier patted Roy's shoulder. "Don't be worried, Nick knows this town like the back of his hand," she said, "and he is hardly the type to run away from home. He is surely just somewhere where we didn't check so far. He will reappear sooner or later."

Bendix tapped her shoulder. "You … um … need to see this," he said while he dragged both of them back to the empty entrance hall. The huge room was empty since all the guests were in the garden now. But before the three adults were downstairs, the door was opened and Cai and Nick carried Victoria into the room while Laila and Elicia carried the new trophies.

"Where were you, Nick?" Roy asked while he looked at the strange scene. "I was worried!"

"I needed to see Vicky today," the boy said while he looked down. "I am sorry, dad."


	6. 80: Trouble

**Chapter 80: Trouble**

* * *

Roy sighed deeply as he looked at his children. "So the reason why you left so suddenly, Nick, was that you wanted to cheer for your sister, right? I have to admit, you did nothing wrong – but the next time it would be great if you could tell me beforehand that you are leaving. I was worried."

"I am sorry," the boy muttered but it was obvious to everyone that he was still happy that he had done it, "but I knew that Vicky needed the support! And look at her new trophies!"

Their father patted the redhead's shoulder. "You won the National Master's, Vicky?" he asked while he hugged her tightly. "That is really, really great! I am proud of you!"

"Doesn't that mean that you need a new shelf for your trophies?" Bendix asked while he handed glasses of orange juice to the children. "Well, you make us all very proud, Victoria."

"Thank you, Uncle Ben," she chirped. "And yes, I think I need more place for my trophies now."

"Maybe you should consider a second sport," Olivier stated thoughtfully. "You could play volleyball or something like that. It has no sense for you to play the little hamster that runs and runs in circles when you already got the highest title a runner can get … National Master's…"

"We never got that far, huh?" her husband smiled lovingly at her. "Coach said we lacked the ambition."

"Exactly!" she laughed. "I can see him in front of me … with his red jacket and his blue pants … oh, and I will never forget the antennas on his head! He always looked like he just got up!"

"Since we are speaking of antennas…" Roy sighed. "Did anyone hear something from Edward? I spoke with him for some moments at your wedding but that was more than a month ago…"

"I heard from Phil who heard it from his dearest mother that Fullmetal found a way to use alchemy again when he was in Creta," Bendix replied casually as always. "It's a complete new theory…"

"That would mean that Creta has an alchemistic genius…" Olivier muttered while she scratched her ear. "I don't know if that couldn't be a problem sooner or later…"

"Creta never broke a peace contract with us before," Nick stated. "They are too honest."

"That's true," the blond woman agreed, "but even if the Cretan government would be insane if they would betray us … there are always some anti-governmental organisations that would kill for such a secret … This alchemy has to be completely different from anything else, you know?"

"But that would mean that Edward and his teacher are both in danger!" Cai exclaimed.

"Especially his teacher, yes," Victoria agreed. "No one would go for a pupil when he can get the teacher who knows everything about the technique."

* * *

Lutetia was the proud and unbowed capital of Creta. It was the most beautiful and richest city in the whole country and many enterprises were to find there. Usually, the city was exceptionally peaceful and especially around the old and deferential university reigned silence on every day. But not today … because today, people were fighting in the building and they were causing noise.

There was a red-haired woman with green eyes who looked like thirty-six while she was already forty and most attacks were directed at her. She was a skilled fighter but even with all the power she had, she wasn't able to defend the university alone against twenty men dressed in black who had come to attack them. The redhead resembled an angry lioness as she dodged a bullet before she attacked the gunman with a blue lightening.

"Surrender, Professor D'Artagan!" one of the men said. "We don't want to hurt you, madame!"

"You will have to hurt me because I will never hand over the secrets I vowed to protect, scum!"

"Professor, you are all alone. You will get terribly hurt if you keep this up," the man tried again. "It is in your best interest to surrender now before we have to take the secrets by force, do you understand?"

"I just understand that you have to be an idiot if you really think that I, Catherina D'Artagan, would ever surrender to an enemy who plots the destruction of everything everyone in Creta is working for!" she hissed at them while she raised her hands again. "You can try again – but as you could see, they never called me the Blue Flash for nothing!"

* * *

"You wanted to see me?" Jun Li asked as she entered the study.

"Yes," her old master said with his usual serious face. "Please, take place, lily." He watched her serenely as she followed his order without any hesitation. "We have another problem, Jun Li."

"I feared so, Ma- Teacher," she corrected herself hastily.

"Qiang Fei left Xing in order to murder you," Jun Yao said, "and I heard from our informants in Xing that she still believes that you prevented her aunt so many years ago from becoming empress after me. From our sources in the East I heard that she already passed EastCity."

"Thank you for the warning, Teacher. I should have seen it coming."

"Aren't you, well, supposed to be a little bit worried, Jun-Jun?"

"I am too surprised that she has still the nerve to go after me to worry right now."

"She will find you here for you never changed your name, Jun Li."

"It's hard to change my name now without breaking the law. Charlotte Llewellyn reformed to laws regarding this aspect too. Nowadays, you need a really good reason to."

"There has to be a way. We need to confuse her … to make it impossible for her to track you down." He sighed deeply while he looked at her peaceful face. "I would die without you."

"I agree," she said. "Well, Ma- Teacher, I listen to whatever you say."

"It would be helpful if you would marry and … change your hairstyle a little bit. Win this game by confusing her. She hasn't seen you in a very long time. She needs to rely on her memory of you."

"I have to refuse, Teacher," she said. "I can't fail my duty. Would I marry, I could hardly serve you like I want to. I vowed _absolute_ _dedication_!"

"Jun Li … as much as I hate to face the facts: I am an old man and you shouldn't go down with me."

"I followed you through the years, Master," she said, slipping back into her old dutiful behaviour once more. "I refuse to let down my emperor!"

He took her fragile little hand and kissed her fingertips. "My Lily," he said. "I know that you are too loyal to leave me behind but it is time for you to blossom. I want you to become happy."

"Master, I promised you my service until the day one of us dies." Jun Li lowered her gaze. "And I break no promises. I am not that kind of woman."

She was twenty-eight and had served him for twenty-two years by now. She looked, however, a little bit older since all the stress of the years as captain of the imperial guards had make her grow old before her time. Usually the people guessed that she was thirty-two while her emperor was easily mistaken for fifty on a good day and for sixty on a bad one.

"Jun Li…" he said with a pained voice. "Please … it hurts me too…"

"No, Master, please, let me stay…" she whispered. "I beg you…"

"You will get hurt if you stay and I don't want you to get hurt."

"I am the last pillar of your strength," she said while she grabbed his hand and squeezed it. "And I just cannot leave you in the dust…"

"And I don't want you to die because of me."

"Master, please…" she begged.

He grabbed both of her hands as he walked around his desk to hug her tightly. She was so fragile to him and he knew that he would have run away with her to marry her if he had been in her age – or at least sixty years younger. "Don't cry, lily," he whispered into her ear. "Please…"

"Bu…but…" She hiccupped. "Ma…ma…master…"

"Pssch…" he rocked her gently back and forth. "My lily … please…"

"I … I do … don't want to leave you!"

"For Truth's sake!" Cai exclaimed. "If you don't want to let go of each other – marry each other! Honestly, it would solve the whole problem!" He exhaled. "Good night!"

* * *

Catherina D'Artagan awoke in a dark room and rubbed the back of her head. Her throat was dry and her head hurt for someone had knocked her out somehow. She wasn't tied up, fortunately, but her gloves with her arrays were missing. She cursed under her breath as she searched for another option to escape this prison. Her pride didn't allow her to stay captured for a long time.

She somehow suspected that the people who had captured her were other alchemists who researched the option to use the power of the planets and if her suspicion was right, she was in trouble.


	7. 81: Trouble II

**Chapter 81: Trouble II**

* * *

Lei Yao, youngest son of Emperor, Jun Yao was no fool. He was an intelligent man who had studied in Xing, Aerugo and Britannia. He had the same age as Jun Li Wei and was often called attractive by women. He had a pale face with sharp features, long black hair that was usually braided, pale grey eyes and a nice set of muscles. He had never tried to become emperor because he had hardly an interest in having a harem of fifty wives and when he had heard that his nephew, Emperor Ling, had refused to take so many wives and had married just his childhood sweetheart instead, he had laughed – which had offended the present members of their clan but he was still a prince and he could do whatever he wanted. Lei was a good fighter and had made it through the years without a bodyguard. His record was clean for he had hardly done anything illegal. He had never taken part in any fights between the clans – he had never thought that it might be necessary because of his high social status.

But even though he hadn't met his nephew, the emperor Ling, in many years, Lei had heard that they were very similar. They were both rebels who didn't accept the rules. It had taken years from him to track his one and only love down but now he had found her – in Amestris. He still remembered their little affair with happiness and he still regretted their breakup. He was proud that he had been able to find her again because she had always been one of the best warriors he had known in his life.

* * *

Jun Li was tired of being what everyone else wanted her to be.  
She had lost all the faith she used to have in other people. She was lost beneath the surface of her seemingly perfection and she had the impression that she was drowning in her own mistakes. She didn't even know what everyone was expecting from her. She was under pressure and everyone wanted her to walk into shoes which weren't made for her and every step that she took was just another mistake to her. She had become numb to all the pain she had been suffering for years now and even though she knew that she should be able to, she couldn't feel the chi of her enemies from afar like she had been able to once. It was worrying her but she had lost the interest. She had grown tired over the years. She knew that she had become what she had always dreaded to be and all she wanted was to be more like herself and less how the others wanted her to be.

She sometimes wondered if the others knew that they were pressuring to be someone she couldn't be. Jun Li wasn't like her grandfather, no matter how hard she had tried. She was a skilled fighter and only few could withstand her when she fought with everything she had but that wasn't what she wanted to be. She was holding on tightly to what she had left from her old self but her fear of losing control was driving her crazy. But what could she still do? Everything she had thought that she could be one day had fallen in front of her and she had stood there and had watched how everything had been shattered into millions of tiny little pieces.

Technically, every second she got to waste was a second that brought her closer to the rest of her real personality but she knew that she might end up failing again. But she knew as well that she would be not her if she would be able to stand it when someone was disappointed in her. That wasn't her. She lived for performing her duty. She lived for being the last pillar of strength for Jun Yao and if this duty would demand her life, she would gladly give it away in order to keep her master alive because after all, he was everything she had left after so many years in which any personal relationship would have been a way to manipulate Jun Yao because as his most trusted servant, she had always had influence on him and many people had tried to make her a friend in order to gain favours of the old emperor.

Jun Li hated being a toy. She hated being used like she had no own feelings. She hated when people didn't even recognised her hard work. She had been keeping Xing safe for years and she had hardly heard a word of appreciation for her work.

* * *

Lei watched Jun Li from afar for a second. Her long hair was in a mess – something he hadn't seen in an even longer time – and she was scolding a little boy who looked down while he tried to protest against her strict orders. Lei chuckled as he watched the scene. She had always been great when it came to put other people back in line after a mistake. He giggled under his breath as he sneaked up on her before he hugged her from behind. She immediately tensed up and he slowly turned her around, carefully to keep her from taking out a weapon. "It has been a while, Jun Li," he said while he smiled down at her with happiness to see her again, "but you are surely beautiful as always."

"Lei Yao…" she whispered. "Why … what…"

"I missed you," he replied. "I really did."

She lowered her head, tired of everything. "My prince…" she sighed. She knew that it had been her mistake to call Jun Yao 'her emperor' and Lei Yao 'her prince'. She had claimed them both as hers – a long time ago.

"My darling…" he lovingly kissed her forehead. "What do you to here? You should have stayed in Xing … with me … it would have been a good idea…"

"I had my reasons," she said as she turned away. "Why did you come?"

Everyone else would have thought that she was accusing him but he saw the confusion which caused her slight aggressiveness against him.

"For the past years, I was gathering intelligence on your actual position, Jun Li. Now I finally found you!"

Cai Yao tugged the woman's sleeve. "Who is this, Jun-Jun?"

"My name is Lei Yao," the man said with an elegant bow.

The boy's eyes widened. "Jun-Jun, what does he want here?"

"Cai, I explain later, yes?" she said, nearly begging.

"You have still the best connections to the Roy al family as I can see," Lei said while he kissed Jun Li's fragile head. "My darling, oh, my darling…"

"Later, both of you," she said, desperately gathering her usual collected attitude. "I need to go to Mr Wu."

* * *

_The faint light of the flame made the black hair look like ebony, warm yet unfaltering. The bright silver ribbon amidst the dark locks seemed to be the silver line at the horizon when night turned into day. Edward leaned back in his chair as he looked up to Phil who sat on the couch while Jade rested her head on his lap and slept._

_"This is the calmest I have seen her in a long time," the black-haired man said softly._

_"You aren't exactly supportive enough for her to relax completely," Edward said as he sipped on his tea. "She is always looking out for you and … you aren't treating her all that nicely…"_

_"We both know the pain of losing someone we cared for just too well," he replied as he ran his fingers through his sister's hair. "To feel how someone rips away half of your life, half of your soul away is painful but to know that it is your own fault makes the pain unbearable."_

_"Then, why don't you help her out of her pain?"_

_"How can I help her when I suffered the same fate?" the older state alchemist asked. "When we were thirteen, younger than you are now, I was forced to rip my own sister, my most precious person away from me. I ripped off half of my soul to protect her and forgot that she would suffer too. So we lost half of our souls because of my foolishness … and my egoism."_

_"And the second time when it happened?" Edward asked._

_"When we were at the Western Military Academy, we became friends with Helena Hamilton and her younger sister, Serena. We grew even further apart afterwards because while I became close friends with Serena, Jade stuck to Lynn. And so we both know the pain the other one is in … without really being part of each other's life anymore. We live two lives – and no longer one and the same."_

_"Doesn't it hurt? Doesn't it hurt to lose someone so close to you?"_

_"Love hurts, didn't you know?" The older man sighed deeply as his eyes became warmer for a moment as his voice grew softer and for a moment, Edward understood why this man had been chosen as most charismatic male leader in the western area quite a few times – along with Bendix Llewellyn. "When she looks at me, I have no choice but to follow. This moment is eternal and repeats itself over and over again because every time she leaves, I follow her. Because wherever she is, there is the sun … there is life. No matter how many times I try to let go of her, I cannot do it. We have two lives now … but still only one heart, no matter how many times we try to shatter it in order to gain two. I will carry her through when she cannot walk anymore because of all the pain but right now, she is still walking. There are many kinds of battle – but in the end, it comes down to two big groups … there's the battle for honour and pride, the battle to prove a point. As long as she fights this kind of fight, I have no right to interfere … because I wouldn't want her to stop me either. As soon as she loses this battle, as soon as it becomes a fight to the death, I will interfere because no matter how much she will hate me afterwards, I can take her hatred but not her death," Phil said calmly. "She is my sister – even after everything else. I am nearly obligated to love her for this reason … even though she would argue with me in that point. We are siblings, we share the same blood and the same dream. I tried to hate her from the depths of my heart but … I couldn't. I couldn't hate her because the most primal kind of love, the love for a kinsman, a comrade … it doesn't vanish just because a foolish human like me tries to hate his sister. Love doesn't ask any questions, whether it's welcomed or not. It simply stays where it is needed. You cannot run as soon as love gets involved. I learned this the hard way."_

_Seconds after this revelation, he fell asleep and a minute later, Jade awoke and rubbed her eyes while the strands her brother had braided stuck out from her head like antennas. "Did you and my brother have a nice conversation?" she inquired as her perfect mask slipped onto her face again._

_"We talked about … automail, yes," Edward lied. "He is worried about his hand, I guess."_

_"That's likely," she said as her brother's head fell onto her lap. "He hasn't been the same old Phil for a long time … I had hoped … ah well, it's not so important," she interrupted herself._

_"I don't like the idea that you have secrets which might endanger the mission," he stated. "Win says that you are having nightmares, that you are talking in your sleep … about a mistake…"_

_She snorted. "That's why I would have preferred to sleep in the kitchen or somewhere else where I wouldn't disturb those who can sleep at night," she stated coolly. "And my brother has nightmares too. There is no way in hell that he might be able to deal with her death without dreaming about it. He cared. She was probably the only person on earth he deeply, truly cared about."_

_"Who are you talking about?"_

_"The mermaid, of course," she snapped before her short moment of outrage was covered up by a deep sigh. "She knew that she was the key … the key to the last part of his heart that was uncorrupted … that was still the heart of the boy he used to be, so many years ago."_

_"How can you two even put up with each other's arrogance and … coldness?"_

_She shrugged. "The arrogance we show is mostly our protection. We … we learned our lesson. When we let get other people too close, we ended up hurt and they mostly died or got gravely injured. To keep others away is something which became our second nature along the years," she said. "By now, we don't even feel pain about the loneliness we cause ourselves anymore. We are fine on our own. We don't need anyone else. Phil and I only need each other."_

_"That means that you both have the person you need the most always nearby but never truly there, right?" he stated. "You and your brother … there is a wall between you, correct?"_

_"When it counts, we have the keys," she smirked._

_The female state alchemist sighed deeply as she stared into the flames. "My brother and I … that's strange. It's like a rush that never stops … destructive but beautiful. It's difficult to explain but sometimes I imagine us to be magnets … magnets that cannot be together but also not far away from each other. When I leave, he always follows – even when he said that he wouldn't come after me this time. In the end, we are on our best way to destroy each other … but that's what siblinghood is about … deep down, it's all about love … and who can claim to understand love … the only emotion that doesn't fight but that still wins … that doesn't want but still gets whatever it needs…" She shook her head. "To me, love is a lot Phil … or air. It has been there all my life … never question, never an answer. Deep down, I wish that we and Roy as well could be children once again. When we were younger, Roy had the kindest and most beautiful smile in the whole world … I want to get this smile back … just like Lynn wanted to retrieve Riza's smile from the darkness as well. We both knew that Ishbal and everything else wasn't easy for them … and even though it sounds wrong, we want to thank them … for being __**there**__."_

_"You love them, your brother and your cousin, that much? I believed you to be colder than that."_

_"Technically, you are right. I am not called the Drachman Blizzard for no reason. I am the coldest among the three of us, the one who stays in control all the time. But that doesn't render me unable to love … or to care. You are brave and smart, Elric, can't you figure it out as well?" she asked._

_He shook his head. "I can understand why you love them, yes. They are your blood, your flesh. That's why you see it as your duty to be there for them. I can understand as much because I have a younger brother as well … but that only explains Phil … and not Roy. He is more like Winry than like Alphonse," the younger state alchemist shrugged._

_"Well, the major difference between your Winry and my Roy is that I am not in love with Roy," she stated drily. "Roy's and my relationship hasn't changed since we were kids. No matter what happens, we will always love each other because we were born like this. There are no secrets, questions or lies that might destroy this relationship. He doesn't ask when there is no need to ask. We are two, still, and we are older now and can see everything crystal clear. And when I leave, we are still there … in the garden where we had so much fun as little children."_

* * *

Edward awoke with a start from his nap as the phone rang. "Yeah?" he muttered.

"Mr Elric?" a male voice said. "We happen to have been able to capture a certain professor from the well-known university of Lutetia…"

"You are dead," the blonde said. "She will murder you."

"Without the option to use alchemy? I doubt it!" the kidnapper laughed darkly. "And the house where we keep her used to belong to her former fiancé! Isn't that funny?"

Edward closed his eyes. He owed his Cretan Teacher to help her in times of need for all she had done for him. While he stayed silent, he remembered the picture on Catherina's desk. The couple had looked so happy but she had mentioned that she had broken up with the man. She had also told him that her former fiancé had been fromWestern Amestris. And the name … the name of the man … Ha … Hami … **Hamilton**!

"I'll get her back, no matter what," the blond alchemist vowed.

He had just some things to do: to get to know where exactly Mr Hamilton had had his mansion, why Catherina had been kidnapped and how to save her. The problem was that he knew who had the answers … but it meant to him that he would have to crawl back to Jade who was probably the only person with the permission to the record room and the will to bend some rules. He groaned in frustration. He had known that they would meet again.

* * *

Jun Yao raised his head as his old servant opened the door to his study. "What happened, lily?" he asked gently. "You are so disturbed…"

"Lei … he re…returned…" she whispered while she collapsed onto a chair. "He … he tracked me down."

The old emperor was impressed by his son's stubbornness as he made his way around the desk to kiss her forehead. "And aren't you happy?" he asked carefully.

"I … I just got over him … and now he comes back!" she slapped herself for being so foolish. She felt torn between her duty and her heart – just the way she had felt years ago. Back then, her responsibility had won out and now she was worried that she might lose control this time around.

"Jun Li!" the old emperor shook her gently. "Please … stay as strong as we know you…"

"He will break me this time around! He will shatter me! I know it!"

"I hate to say it that bluntly, my lily, but … it's like this: Lei loves you, he really, really loves you!"

"Why should he love someone as pathetic and weak as me, master?"

"You are beautiful, my daughter," he smiled. "And he loved you for many, many years. My son is a good and loyal man, better than I or anyone else could ever be. He respects you deeply, Jun Li."

"I … I…" Jun Li chocked out as she wiped her eyes. "It hurts me! It tears me apart!"

* * *

The next morning, Jade was busy with her reports as the door to her office was slammed open as Edward walked into the room like it was his own. "Morning, Breeze Soul," he announced.

She leaned back while she said goodbye to her idea of a peaceful morning. "Fullmetal," she stated.

"Say, didn't you tell me that you have the keys to the old file room on the fifth floor? I need some files and I don't want to bother General Armstrong with it…" he muttered.

"The file room on the fifth?" she frowned at him. "There should be nothing with any importance to you, Elric. Those files are old – and they are all about the fallen soldiers of our army. It's nothing where you should go just because you can, Fullmetal."

"I need information on something very important to me and I need the file of a deceased soldier," he said as he stood his ground. "Please, Soul. I promise that no on will ever know that I was in there."

She glared at him before she started to chuckle. "I know that you think that I am no match for you, Fullmetal, but do you honestly think that I would catch on?" she asked. "Just for the record – the first thing I did when I took over the room, I changed the order of every single file until it had an order I can work with. If you ever took the time to check my file, you would know what I was hired for in first place after the downfall of the corrupt system." She smiled smugly. "I am the expert for codes, orders and systems. I never came across a code I didn't get and – just as an advice – a system I see is usually more or less invisible for most other people."

"You like to blackmail people, don't you, Breeze Soul?" he sighed.

"It's one of my favourite hobbies, yes," she winked at him. "So, Fullmetal, what are you searching for?"

"The Hamilton-file," he said as casually as possible.

"I … I … somehow don't want to grant you the access," she muttered, "but I have to, right?"

* * *

The five files were dusty and Edward sighed deeply as Jade locked the room behind her as she left. The rules for reading these files were strict due to their content and he didn't want to risk an argument with Jade Mustang who seemed to be a little bit annoyed these days.

Five names were neatly written on the labels and five fates were told in the thick folders.

He read the names while he wondered why he had never asked so many questions. Peter Victor Hamilton – a general from the West with known connections to Creta due to his Cretan roots, his wife, Reine Hawkeye-Hamilton – a major general born in the East with the reputation to be very cruel and proud, their youngest daughter, Serena Ann Hawkeye Hamilton, a major who had been stationed in the Northern Area, at Briggs to be exact, her older twin sister, Helena Anastasia Hamilton Force, a major who had been working in the West before she had been summoned to Central City where she had died shortly after Edward had met her … and lastly, the second oldest daughter, Kay Victoria Hawkeye Hamilton – a major general who had served in the Ishbal-War where she had been famous as Steel Rose, her destruction rates weren't to be rivalled by anyone but Roy Mustang and Zolf J. Kimblee.

He randomly picked the file of Kay Hamilton and opened it. On top of the written reports were some pictures of her. He saw the idealistic gleam in her eyes when she had first entered the army and the complete despair in the photo taken after Ishbal. Many parts of her file had been erased, probably by the Bradley-regime, but there was one name mentioned in the file beneath the point _'known affiliations'_: Doctor Ralph Knox.

Other names were Roy Mustang, Maes Hughes, Riza Hawkeye and Olivier Armstrong but Edward felt like the doctor had to know a little bit more about the Hamilton-clan than them – especially since it was stated in a non-black part that he had treated Kay for weeks in Ishbal.


	8. 82: Trouble III

**82: Trouble III**

* * *

Qiang Fei watched the house carefully. She was standing on the roof of another building and her hair was in a mess – not that she would care at the moment. Before she grew too bored, however, her target left the house. But Jun Li wasn't alone. She held the hand of a little boy and a man had his arm around her waist. He was around her age, maybe a little bit older, and his smile was bright. And suddenly, Qiang knew who he was: Prince Lei Yao.

It was fitting, in a strange way. The rebellious prince who had left the court the day his father had died and the loyal servant who had left the country after her master's funeral made quite a good couple – even if Qiang had come to erase Jun Li's life forever. The woman was a mistake and a mistake had to go, no matter what. The rules were rules and Qiang would make sure that they played by them too.

Of course, Jun Li was a beautiful young woman even if she looked older than she was because all the stress of her youth had made her grew old long before her time. Still, Jun Li was one of the most lethal warriors in Xing – and no one had ever survived a fight against her because when she got angry, she made sure that there was nothing left of her opponent.

The Xingese Princess brushed her hair and put it back into her usual bun before she started to follow her enemy. Of course, Jun Li wore black, her usual colour. Black was the colour of the night and as a child that had been born underneath the moon the colour had become a part of her personality.

"Alright, alright," Qiang muttered. "The woman in black is the enemy."

* * *

The doctor looked down at Edward before he stepped aside and allowed the boy to enter the house. They took place in the living room and Edward friendly told Knox what he had come for. The older man sighed deeply while he took out a cigarette. "Hamilton, huh?" he asked. "I had nothing but trouble with this youngster," he huffed but his eyes betrayed the fondness he had had for the late state alchemist. "She … she was an amazing person. I can very good remember how I met her … I thought that she was some low-ranking sniper or something like that and asked her for a cigarette when I saw that she was smoking in front of her tent…" He shook his head. "And when I saw the rank insignia on her shoulders, I realised that I was talking with the infamous Steel Rose … she hated that name…"

"Why are you mentioned as one of her few _known affiliations_, Doctor?" Edward asked bored. "From what I saw in her file, she specialised in covered operations … she shouldn't have had any contact with you. I don't know much about the war but…"

"She was one of the first to come and one of the last to leave," Knox replied. "I knew her since 1907 – she was called into battle long before the others. I bet that the pigs from high command hoped that she would deal with everything at once … she was hardly more than a child … younger than you right now…" He shook his head in disgust. "It broke her, I guess. When the other state alchemists came, she was already used to the pressure … she kept fighting – to protect her comrades. Kay wasn't someone to kill innocents, believe me. I always wondered why she became a state alchemist … but on the other hand, I knew her mother. Reine was a terrible woman, really."

"Why are so many parts of the file blackened?" Edward asked.

"I painted a part of her medicinal reports black because there were many things no one had to know. I blackened many files from patients of this time to tell the truth." He scratched his head. "The reason why I was in her file is that I treated her when she got shot in 1908. It was horrible, believe me. The bullet was in her shoulder and I needed the help of Captain Hughes, Major Mustang and Cadet Hawkeye to remove it. We had nothing to numb Kay's pain and I don't even want to imagine how much it hurt back then. I offered her to send her home … but she told me that she wanted to stay – for her comrades. She hated to kill – but she was one of the best. I saw her just once in action … it was terrifying. Lightening Alchemy … Energy Alchemy … she could erase whole villages with a single wave of her hand…" he shuddered. "No wonder that Kimblee was so impressed."

Edward nodded slightly. Energy Alchemy was dangerous; everyone knew that and just the best alchemists could even dream of using it. He had stayed away from it all his life. "Do you happen to know someone who knows about the mansion the family used to own?" Edward asked.

"I know that there is still someone alive who owns the mansion," Knox said. "Nerissa, the eldest child, an extremely skilled and very dangerous alchemist who happens to live with Doctor Robinson right now … but she could be a little bit dangerous. She isn't the mentally most stable person, you know?"

* * *

Jun Li felt the aggressive chi that was suddenly coming towards her and even though she was wearing shoes with heels, she jumped out of reach. She twirled in the air like she had never stopped training for one day and landed on both her feet. She growled lowly as she ripped of a part of her skirt and took one of her many knives from her garter band. She crossed her arms and smiled amused as she saw her opponent. "It seems like the Fei-clan still didn't forgive me," she chuckled.

"How could we forgive the woman who is responsible for our misery?" Qiang hissed.

"You are wealthy and still you dare to claim misery as yours?" Jun Li asked while she pointed with her knife down at her opponent. "Believe me – the only clan I would grant the fact that they live in misery is the Chang-clan and even they are leaving the era of misery now."

"You dare to judge?" the princess glared at her. "You … you are _nothing_…"

"I heard from the little stunt you did when Xing welcomed guests from this country, Qi-Qi…" Jun Li gracefully jumped back down so she was eye to eye with her opponent. "And to tell the truth, I was very surprised of Ling's mercy. To attack a guest from behind … that's cowardly…"

"You would know, right?"

"Believe me – I always took pleasure out of seeing my enemy's face when I killed him."

* * *

Abigail was sitting on the porch of her mansion when Izumi left the house with two glasses of wine. The younger sister sat down and sighed deeply. "It's strange how fast time flies when you are fighting, huh?" she asked. "I mean … it seems like it was just yesterday when Abel died…"

Abigail gritted her teeth. "I still can't believe it," she whispered and her hands covered her face. "I … I miss him so much, Izumi, even after all these years I still hope that he will come through the door one day and asks me when I will have finished cooking." She bent over and rested her forehead on her knees. "I know that you are his sister too … but we were always so close … I felt like no one could hurt me as long as he was around … and when I got hurt, he was always there to comfort me. He was so strong … so friendly…" She wiped away a single tear that ran down her cheek. "I loved him…"

Izumi wrapped one arm around her and rubbed her back gently. "I know, I know," she said. "He was your twin after all, right? It is just natural that you loved him, Abby, but you need to move on. You keep being stuck in the past and you ignore that life isn't waiting for you to catch up."

* * *

She looked like a child, Edward decided as the blond woman opened the door. Her long hair was braided and fell down her left shoulder while her blue eyes stared at him in terror. For an alchemist who had been able to take out his Teacher, she seemed incredibly weak and fragile … but maybe her outer appearance was nothing but a cover for her inner strength. He gulped as she stayed silent. "Are you … um … Nerissa Hawkeye?" he asked carefully. He had heard that she was insane and he didn't want her to go berserk on him.

She nodded. "Yes, that would be me," she said calmly as she extended her hand. "Who are you?"

"Edward Elric," he said slowly. "I … um … need your help, Miss Hawkeye."

She stared at him, unfazed. "My help?" she asked while she tilted her head. "What kind of help?"

"I need to save someone … and she is captured at the Hamilton-mansion," he said while he looked down. "And I owe her a huge favour, so I decided that saving her life would be a good start."

"I … see…" Nerissa muttered while her pale skin glowed in the faint light of the few sunrays which had found a way through the clouds. "The mansion … that's dangerous … no one was there … in a long time … I was the last one to leave … and I left years ago…" She stepped back and allowed him to enter. "It is, however, not impossible for someone who grew up there…"

"And you grew up in this building, Madam?" he asked carefully.

She nodded. "Ever since the day I had to leave the Hawkeye-mansion I lived there, under the care of my father's closest friend," she said while she sat down on a fragile chair. "She would have hated what I became when she left, though." She shrugged. "I know the building by heart … I even know the secret passages … and I know how to get into the house without being spotted by anyone."

"And you offer me this knowledge?" the young alchemist asked while he wondered what had happened to make such a fragile and pretty woman turn into a murderous lunatic.

"This knowledge is impossible to pass down without showing you how to do it," Nerissa said. "This building is very old … and it would be a shame if it would get destroyed in a fight…" She rubbed her temples. "I consider going with you," she sighed, "but I am not sure if I am allowed to…"

An old woman closed the door behind her after she had entered. "I told you that you are free to go wherever you want to, Nerissa," she said gently, "and maybe this trip could help you. I heard from Mr Mustang that Mr Elric is quite responsible…"

Edward stared at her. "Are you Doctor Robinson?" he asked.

"Yes," the old lady said friendly, "and you came because you need Nerissa's help, right? I hope you know that she is really, really fragile at the moment. I allow you to take her with you in order to free your friend but if you bring Nessa back and she is worse than she is now, I will murder you."

She was a tiny little lady who had to use a crutch to move around but Edward saw the gleam in her eyes and he knew that it would be dangerous to disobey her.

"Nessa, darling," Esmeralda Robinson smiled at the young woman. "Why don't you go and get your things? I am sure that Mr Elric doesn't have any time to waste."

* * *

Catherina stared at the familiar walls of her cell while she wondered how ironic it was. She had lived in this very house for years and she had always wondered how long it had been since she had left the mansion behind. It was crazy to think that maybe, if she wouldn't have decided the way she had made her decision in the end, she would have spent her life here. She had been always a close friend of Peter Hamilton, since their early youth, and she had loved him dearly. When he had fallen, she had cried for weeks before she had caught herself. It had always been her advantage that she could easily collect herself, no matter how hard it was for her.

"…so, Prof, you really don't want to tell us?" one of her kidnappers smirked.

She raised her left eyebrow. "Do me a favour, boy," she said. "Go to tell and take the rubbish with you on your way out. I am sick of being asked the same question over and over again."

His fingers carefully touched her forehead. "You know, Prof, we have to punish you if you don't start to cooperate with us. You will be without food today," he added as he left.

She crossed her arms as she sat down once more. "You seem to forget that I used to be part of the Special Forces, idiot," she muttered. "Torture is a real wellness treatment for me, you moron."

* * *

"…so, Miss Nerissa…" Edward looked at her. "I heard from many people that you are a very skilled alchemist … so how does it come that you don't work for the state?"

She looked at him with disgust. "I lost my complete family to the state," she said while she wrapped her arms around her body, "and I see no reason in being a dog as long as I can afford a life in freedom." She snorted. "Furthermore … I had some training when I was younger," she said. "I don't need to be in the military. I am rich and can protect myself."

"Under which master did you study?" Edward asked. He had heard from everyone who had met the blonde so far that Nerissa was extremely talented and he wondered who had taught her.

"My father's friend who took care of me," she replied. "She was a wonderful alchemist herself and she could keep me from losing my mind completely. I owe her a lot … she kept me sane for years…" She ran one of her fragile hands through her long hair. "But I also learned a lot from the books."

"So you are self-taught at a certain degree, yes?"

She nodded silently.

"I hope that your studies pay off," he told her seriously.


	9. 83: Trouble IV

**Chapter 83: Trouble IV**

* * *

Jun Li inhaled deeply as she stepped back a little bit. "You know, Qiang, I really pity you," she said while she let her kunai circle around her finger. "It has to be a really sad life when you can never be happy for someone else … but, hell, what did I expect from a spoiled little brat like you?"

The princess glared at her and if looks could kill, Jun Li was at least six feet under. "You are dead."

The bodyguard allowed herself a little smirk before she touched the vein on the side of her neck with her free fingers. "No, my heart is still beating, so I am hardly dead," she replied while her smirk widened. "And, really, I wouldn't be one of the best in Xing if I would die from a simple glare."

"How … how can you even dare to speak with me in such a way, servant?" Qiang yelled in anger.

"Technically, she stands above you," Lei said calmly. "I believe that you messed up the rules in the imperial palace where it is stated that a lady of Xing who got this title from an emperor stands above any princess who earned the title with her birth…" He was a man who detested fighting but he was an extremely skilled fighter who had trained for years. "Step back, Qiang. I order you to as your uncle. Step back before you can get hurt, understood? Step back I said!"

As she didn't obey, he stepped forward in a fluid movement and blocked her dagger with his arm. The metal cut through the silk of his black jacket and through his skin. Jun Li gasped as she felt the pain running through his chi and as she saw the crimson blood, she stepped forward while her chi was radiating her pure wrath. Cai stepped backwards while he watched her in admiration. Lan Fan was terrific as a fighter, there was no doubt, but the difference between her and her older sister was that Jun Li never allowed anything to cloud her judgement, meaning that she had full concentration. It took seconds for her to incapacitate her opponent and after the waitress tied the princess up, she walked over to Lei while she took a set of alkahestry-knives from her belt. She sighed deeply as she formed the array. Honestly, she had been fixing up princes and princesses for years now.

"Ah…" Lei smiled at her while his uninjured hand cupped her face. "My Jun Li … my heart, my love, my bird … how much I love you…"

She snorted. "You have a way with your words, Lei…" she muttered while she helped him up after retrieving her knives. "Well, I would say that we should hand over Qiang to the police. Sadly enough, I keep filling the cells in Amestris with people who are foolish enough to attack me."

Cai held her hand like it was a lifeline once more and she hugged him tightly before he surprised her by kissing her cheek. "Ling was right," the little boy said. "You are more than just alright."

She laughed and patted his head. "Go on and look if you can hang out with Laila," she said. "I need to get rid of a stupid bitch who dared to mess with me."

* * *

By the time the both blond alchemists finally reached the majestic building, Edward was impressed of his companion's calm demeanour. Of course, she had the advantage of knowing the area and the house but considering the situation they were in (and that it was the first time for her to be free to do whatever she wanted), the patience she had as she tried to force the lock to the secret passage to open was amazing. It was obvious to Edward that her skill had suffered under the long time she hadn't been allowed to do anything what could drive her back to her insane behaviour from before. He knew that she hadn't been allowed to use alchemy for a whole year and even he who had given it up it on his own accord, had desperately searched a way to get it back while she had been able to deny this part of herself without any trouble. She had always had everything she needed to transmute but she had never broken the promise she had made.

"Alright," she finally said while she took out a pen. "It would take too long to unlock it the old-fashioned way. Step back, I am going to celebrate my return with a loud bang … just to announce that I am not dead yet." The array she drew was small and Edward wondered how she would use enough energy to make this little thing blow up the door. "Well, let's try it out," she said casually while she pressed her thumbs on the array which started to glow before the door swung open with a loud bang.

"That was great!" Edward complimented enthusiastically. "How … how did you do this?"

She smirked. "Like I said, I grew up here and in my youth I made sure that I know every secret passage my father left behind. He was the one to construct this passage … and he sealed it. It took months for me to figure out how to get back into the building without anyone's notice but one day I figured out the seal on the other side of the door. I just had to activate it from our side to let us in."

"That's…" the young man stared at her. "That's more than most state alchemists can do!"

She snorted. "Most self-taught alchemists who take their studies seriously are at least as good as any state alchemist," she said. "And I always take everything very seriously, Elric."

"Of course … but to activate an array you cannot see or touch … that's advanced alchemy!"

She shrugged. "It's based on the alkahestry from Xing," she said. "In order to be better than anyone else, I combined both techniques to create my own brand of alchemy. Most of the time it was frustrating," she admitted as she walked down the dark path before she picked up a torch which she lightened with her flint. "But I always used to say _'the end decides about the worth of the result'."_

"You seem awfully calm when I consider that we are probably walking into our downfall," he stated.

"You are way too negative," she complained. "Try to see it as a test. When we survive and win the battle, we are awesome. If we fail and die, we are dead."

"Amazing how sharp your conclusion is," he muttered. "The death is a logical consequence of dying."

"I like pointing out the obvious," she said while she stopped in front of a hole in the wall. "It looks like no one was down here since it left," she said relived as she took out a map, a necklace and a bracelet. "The map shows the whole building with every single detail," she explained while she handed it over to Edward. "I expect you to keep it safe. It is the only way you won't get lost in the building if we had to separate from each other in order the find the hostage."

"The map is amazing!" he said as he opened it. "And is it really true to scale?"

She glared at him before she crossed her arms. "Do I look like someone who doesn't do everything as good as possible?" she asked with a hiss. "Of course it is! It took me three weeks – but now it is almost perfect. It shows every floor and I am sure that you will be able to find your way with it."

* * *

"What the hell is she doing?" Laila asked while she watched Victoria from afar. Cai and the blond girl had been following the redhead for half an hour by now and it seemed like Victoria had no idea where she was going. Suddenly, the younger girl stopped in front of a shop and looked around, like she was making sure that she wasn't followed by anyone, before she entered.

"Why is she making so many efforts to keep other people from knowing what she does in her free time?" Cai asked with a frown. "It's not like it was forbidden to buy books, right?"

Laila whistled with a grin. "But Vicky is hardly allowed to buy these books," she stated. "The book store sells books on alchemy and on how to decode alchemistic manuscripts. I know that because daddy and aunty Jade were talking about the store … and Jade happens to be the number one when it comes to codes and systems. I just don't get what Vicky would want there. She has nothing-" She stopped and her eyes widened. "Of course…" she whispered. "This sneaky brat … she planned it out all along … she wasn't really sick last weekend when everyone attended the dinner at Aunty Gracia's … and I bet that Jade's sudden disappearance can be blamed on Vicky too…"

"If I follow you correctly, you suspect her to mess around with alchemistic codes," Cai said with a frown, "and from how I see our favourite redhead, I guess that it could be right. Victoria is smart, maybe the smartest out of us, and I would always say that she would do everything for her goal."

"But even for her, this is drastic," Laila muttered while she frowned. "She is learning alchemy with Jade without mommy's knowledge and that's bad enough but that she would make an attempt to figure out a code…" She shook her head. "And even though daddy gave up on keeping her from alchemy long ago, I am not sure if he would like it when she is doing something like this on her own…"

"If she has Aunty Jade's help, it's hardly like she is endangering her innocence," Cai said while he wrapped one arm around his best friend. "I am sure that she knows what to do, Laila…"

"Aunty Jade called daddy from the train station," Laila replied. "She is on her way to the West. She didn't tell him what she is doing there but from how I know her, she is seeking trouble once more."

"That means that your parents will have to work more the next few days, right?" he asked.

"Yeah," the blonde replied while she watched how her little sister left the store with a heavy bag. "We need to talk with her – maybe we are completely wrong and she is just buying some novels. I don't want to have a wrong image of her, you know?"

They walked over to the younger girl who was happily eating lemon ice cream and Laila smiled at her. "What did you buy, Vicky?" she asked sweetly.

"I bought nothing," her sister replied. "I just picked up the books Aunty Liv ordered because she is stuck in a meeting with Drachma until eight o'clock."

* * *

Nerissa heard the footsteps before Edward even had the chance to grow suspicious and twirled around. She was – like Laila had always thought – insanely beautiful in her own way. The mad gleam had left her eyes and now her beauty wasn't to be called twisted any longer. She wore a blue jacket with golden buttons, a jeans and a white blouse with sneakers. She held up her hand and Edward froze instantly. "Someone is coming," the former lunatic said slowly.

"You are sure?" Edward whispered. "How can you be so sure?"

"My hearing is better than yours," she stated while she closed her eyes to concentrate better on the light steps. "I trained it for a while as a child, you know?"

"Can you estimate how far it is away?" he asked while he frowned slightly.

She sighed. "Edward, can you walk?" she asked insulted. "Of course I can! Hundred metres away."

"Closer, actually," the familiar voice of Jade Mustang rang out as the young woman came around a corner with a face which spoke of great anger. "First of all: not everyone walks like a bunch of elephants like you to! And secondly: what the hell are you thinking, Edward? You took a bunch of files with you that belong to me! Did you even think about all the problems I will get for this move of yours? I could even lose my job!"

"How the hell did you found us?" Nerissa asked calmly while she looked at the black-haired woman.

"Like I said: finding you two is as easy as finding two elephants," Breeze Soul muttered.

"Well, since you are already here, you can help as with the door," Edward said. "Nerissa's genius of a father made it impossible to use alchemy on it and she doesn't have her key with her."

Jade rolled her eyes before she took out a hairpin. "Well, that will probably take some minutes," she said. "I haven't done stuff like this since I was fifteen and broke into Phil's room to read his diary."

Six minutes later, the door swung open and they entered.

"W-o-w…" Edward exclaimed as he saw the _entrance hall_. "This is surely a nice place for a gangsters' hideout! It looks totally cool!"

Nerissa glared at him. "Do you even notice that we are still in the broom closet, right?" she asked before she opened the door and stepped into the real entrance hall. "Honestly, my father would cry if he would know what happened to the house of his family." She crinkled her nose in disgust. "Really, how dare these morons to taint this place with their presence? It makes me downright _sick_!" She had barely finished the sentence as a group of men in black robes appeared in the doorways and her lips curled up into a smile. "There is no place like home after all," she stated smugly, "but it looks like I have to clean this area before I can be happy here once more…"

To Edward, Jade was a hypocrite of unknown degree. She had been successful in whatever she had done so far and sometimes it seemed as if she was living a never-ending dream of success. True, he saw the hard work that had been the reason for her success but he had also to consider that she had had the support of her family and a fool's luck.

She was too far gone to finish what she had started, in another lifetime, before the pain and the agony of losing a beloved person. He wasn't sure whether she would ever be there to put an end to what she had fought for since she had left the academy. She was also too high above the clouds, flying aimlessly because her old goal was gone and had left her hanging in midair where she neither fell nor proceeded.

Alphonse had compared her to a snow globe only a few hours after they had met for the first time and Edward agreed with his brother. Jade was independent and didn't need someone to stay alive. She was safe on her shelf, being a weak imitation of winter. But when she wanted to shine, she needed someone to shake her up – and he happened to be this someone. He knew that she hated the power he had over her … that he could make her fight even when she saw hardly a sense in a battle anymore. He hated that it worked the other way around as well. She was giving him the courage and the ambition she lacked and he never understood how she could give something she never had possessed.

But she had called him out on his own hypocrisy. She had glared at him when he had confronted her and he still heard her words in his ears. "We are very much alike in this aspect, Edward," she had told him seriously. "You keep reaching for the greatest goal available but you refuse to shed sweat for your ambitions. You can go on and delude yourself into believing that your genius brain will support you forever. There will be a time when you will have to rely on other people than only yourself."

She had been right – like usual. There was no one who knew him like her … maybe because they were cut out of the same wood. They were strong on their own yet nearly unbeatable when they fought with someone else.

They didn't have to like each other – it was enough that they managed to work together when it was necessary and this was something they always managed to do somehow. This time, it was obvious that they had to work together and so it went without saying. A small glare to both sides and they were ready to face the problem head on.

* * *

Riza stepped back from the window as she turned around to look at her husband. "I always thought that Vicky shared Kay's thirst to learn," she said worried while she walked over to him, "but now I fear that her obsession goes deeper than Kay's. Victoria is incredibly smart … she searched the limits she cannot pass … she is destroying herself, I believe. I never saw such an attitude before … but maybe that is what Nerissa drove into the mess she couldn't get out of alone…"

Roy rubbed her tense shoulders after getting up and stopping behind her. "Victoria has far more self-discipline than anyone else I happen to know," he said, "and like you said, she is way too smart to get into serious trouble. The only problem I see at the moment that she is losing her childhood right now." He huffed. "And I don't want her to go down the Elric-path … that's why I asked Jade to keep an eye on our little redhead." He sighed deeply. "And like I expected it from her, Jade is doing a good job … she keeps Victoria busy with the theory and keeps mentioning that Human Transmutation is forbidden with a reason. You could say that she is brainwashing Vicky – in a good way, though."

* * *

Olivier's lower lip trembled and she stared at the broken pen in her hand with disbelief. Who dared it to break in the middle of a report? She had used it for years, ever since Bendix had given it to her as a present for her tenth birthday … and now, her precious pen was broken.

"Hey-ho, Aunty Liv," Victoria said as she walked in while she dragged Laila and Cai along.

"Vicky, Laila … I need your help," the blond woman said. "My … my pen is broken…"

"So? Buy a new one – you have the money after all," Laila said with a shrug before Cai elbowed her.

"Oh dear," Victoria sighed while she walked over to take a look on the pen. "I would love to make it whole again … but I have no clue how such a pen works. Nick is the expert for stuff like this – but I can call him if you want to! So you can use it again!"

* * *

The explosion made the whole building tremble and the shock wave let the three alchemists fly through the air. Jade hadn't much luck; she hit a pillar and heard how some of her ribs gave in – again. Nerissa was the luckiest for she landed on the couch. Edward was thrown against a wall and as Nerissa got back up to check on her comrades, Jade was getting already back on her feet in spite of the raging pain in her chest while Edward lay their, unmoving. Nerissa paled as she saw the blood on his head and looked back at Jade.

"Do you think…" the blonde couldn't say it. "Jade … please … answer me…"

The dark-haired woman was about to say something as she smelled the fire beneath them and heard the agonised scream of a woman. The state alchemist collected herself. "Nerissa, trust me, I … I take care of it," she said seriously. "You aren't hurt … go and take care of it … I beg you…"

Nerissa knew that she could nothing do for the relationship between the Air Alchemist and the Fullmetal Alchemist was an incredibly complicated one. She had heard of their fights that left the training grounds for the state alchemists in states close to complete destruction but she had also heard of kinder, softer moment between them. She had heard of Jade's knack to ensure her subordinates' safety before she cared about her own and so the blond woman hadn't been surprised to hear that Jade had allowed Edward to sleep on the couch in her office when he had been stuck in the capital after missing the last train back to the eat. Rumour had it that she had stayed the whole night to catch up with her paperwork while she had guarded his sleep.

The relationship was strange, Nerissa thought. Maybe it was sibling-like but then again, the age gap was neither enough to make her his mother in a sense nor small enough to make her his older sister. She was both, in a way, and this was why Nerissa Hamilton would never be there to stand in between of Breeze Soul and Fullmetal. Jade would be there to keep Edward alive, not Nerissa. She swallowed her pride and nodded. "I understand," she said as she walked down the stairs, away from her injured comrade and the motionless body of the boy.


	10. 84: Trouble V

**Chapter 84: Trouble V**

* * *

Nerissa's footsteps echoed through the empty hallway as she made her way downstairs. She was more than just annoyed and her anger pushed her forward in record speed. She finally stopped as she reached the former dungeon which her father had used to store his wine away.

"It looks like someone came to visit," a black-hooded man said while he straightened.

She stretched her fingers and it gave a little sound while she glared at the men. "As the owner of this house, I ask you who allowed you to use it for your … criminal activities," she said she looked around in the room. She knew that she could easily take out all the three men without much effort but she preferred to keep the spilled blood on a low level.

"Looks like the little princess escaped the madhouse," the man in front of her grinned.

"I was released," she replied calmly while her left feet backwards to ensure her defence. "But – what is your excuse to be outside again, Mister? Someone who dares to mess with me is insane."

"Shut up, slut!" he yelled at her before he launched forward to grab her throat. She stepped sideward for a moment while her left hand caught the outstretched hand and her right hand grabbed his jacket before she pushed him away with all her strength.

"I hate men like you," she sighed. "Why do you have to be so violent? Why can't we talk about it?"

The man got back on his feet and attacked again, this time however she had enough and instead of simply defending herself by avoiding an injury she hit back – and broke his nose with the back of her hand. Blood spilled all over her jacket and for a second, she seemed dazed before she raised her head again to glare at him. "This jacket," she begun lowly, "was given to me by my Teacher and you bastard dare to stain it with your blood? Who do you think you are?"

But the man never got to answer because he fainted out of fear.

She sighed deeply and turned towards another man. "Well, why don't we go on, buddy?" she asked.

* * *

Edward heard someone calling his name and in his daze, he thought at the first moment that he had died and that he was hearing his mother. But soon enough, his vision wasn't blurry any longer and he looked into the half-annoyed-half-worried face of Jade Mustang who had his head on her lap. As she saw that he was awake, her face became hundred percent annoyed once more. "Finally," she said.

"How long was I out, Soul?" he asked while he sat up. "Whoa, my head feels terrible!"

"Ten minutes," she replied and got up while she hissed in pain. "Really, Elric, from what Roy told me, I expected a little bit more from you. One blow and you go down? Be happy that you were never called in. You would never have lasted more than eight seconds in a war."

"I am happy that you are obviously still yourself," he replied with a grin as he stood up too. "Really, Soul, what would you have done if I would have died?"

She glared at him over her shoulder but it wasn't as impressive enough because she had a scratch across her face. "Well, I would have need a reason why I let you die on my watch," she said, "but I am sure that most people would have agreed with me that you were annoying enough to let you die."

"Aren't you a caring superior, Mustang?" he asked while he frowned at her. "What are you doing?"

"Two things," she replied. "I am calling reinforcements and the hospital in WestCity. We will need both if my predictions are correct – what they usually are…"

"You are such a self-obsessed moron!" he yelled at her. "And as if you would get a connection!"

She smiled at him before she started to speak. "This is Brigadier General Jade Mustang speaking," she said while her voice was laced with smugness. "The code is Mother-Otto-Rune-Otto-Nine. I expect to be connected as soon as possible, understood?" she turned around to grin at Edward. "Impressed?"

He rolled his eyes. "Is that really your code?" he asked.

She shook her head. "No – but the girl at the connection is a friend of mine and she just asks because it is deemed as necessary by the protocol – in reality, she couldn't care less."

"How does it come that you are always used for the ridiculous jobs?" he taunted. "You are always supposed to do the things no one else wants to do…"

She chuckled. "You just proved how childish you are," she said. "I am content with what I have … all the people are constantly underestimating me – that's why I am still standing and got away with some broken ribs while you have probably trouble with your brain now…" She paused for a second before she smirked at him. "Oh, I forgot that something non-existent cannot cause trouble…"

He crossed his arms. "What's your problem with me, Mustang?" he asked.

She sighed. "I have no problem," she replied. "I am just careful around people who are idiotic enough to endanger family and friends," she said calmly.

* * *

Roy stared at her while he tilted his head a little bit. "I am surprised," he said calmly. "Today is the day of Serena's death … and you really want to work like nothing happened?"

Riza sighed deeply. "It wouldn't bring her back if I wouldn't work today," she said, "and even though we were family, Rena and I were never close. As much as I miss her, we separated our ways years before her death … so I lost the right to slack off because of her death."

"You know … she had her reasons for not speaking with anyone," Roy said while he rubbed her back. "She wasn't arrogant as many people thought … she just never felt comfortable with many people around her. When you got her alone, she was a great person to talk to. I really miss her."

"And you were one of the people who could make her talk sometimes?" Riza asked while she leaned against him. "I thought that Kay was your favourite out of the sisters – because you used to go out with her and Charles when we were much younger…"

"Nah, Kay was scary. She was too happy when she could annoy me a little bit, so I liked Serena more than her to tell the truth. Rena was a great person – and she was a great teacher. At first, she hardly spoke with me but later on … well … she started to open up a little bit…"

"She was always the smartest out of us…" Riza rubbed her dry eyes. "I miss her … I miss the way she used to glare at Lynn and Kay when they went too far in their arguments…"

"She is a lot like Vicky if you ask me," Roy replied. "But really, Riza, if you don't want to be here, you can go. Pick up the twins and go to the park. I promise, I will do my complete paperwork – and yours too. Just … please don't force yourself to work when you don't feel like it." He kissed her softly. "I don't want to see you break down, you know? I had to watch how so many people tore themselves apart…"

* * *

Female bodyguards had always been rare, Lan Fan mused as she walked through her old town as her old mask obscured her face. She was technically supposed to be in some fancy wellness hotel in Amestris which Mei had recommended after spending a weekend there with Alphonse to escape Edward being Edward but the empress had decided to visit her home – well, the house where she had grown up and where she had learned that nothing in life would ever come without any efforts.

The village had changed she noticed as she stopped for a moment to marvel at the beauty of the home residence of the Yao-family, the most beautiful palace in whole Xing – at least in her eyes. She once more inwardly mourned the lack of female bodyguards as she froze. The green jacket with the sign of the Cho-clan which happened to be one of the strongest warrior clans in the village shone bright amidst the usual black uniforms and the deep black ponytail fell onto the crest which showed a dog – symbol for loyalty and implication of their tracking skill likewise. The empress had never worked with a member of the Cho-clan when she had been still a real bodyguard and not an empress. She had heard, however, that it was challenging. Despite their loyal nature and their affiliation with huge dogs which might have indicated that members of the Cho-clan were submissive, the exact opposite was the case. They were proud and their pride came from the loyalty to the Yao-clan which they had displayed many, many times along the years.

The girl in the green jacket was literally skipping down the dusty road but Lan Fan wasn't easily deceived by seemingly innocent and cheerful disguises. She had seen the kunai holster on the girl's hip which indicated that she wasn't one to mess with and the slim silver bracelet marked her as one of the village's leader's most faithful subordinates. For a moment, Lan Fan tried to guess her age as she silently followed her through the crowd. She was very young, maybe twelve years old which made her achievements even more impressive.

The girl in green and black moved fluidly, never touching another person and being gone before anyone could notice her presence. Lan Fan had seen enough assassins to realise that this girl was one as well. She had the right physical appearance to be one hell of a bodyguard: slim and with light bones. The girl reminded the empress of a bird for these reasons.

They quickly reached the outskirts of the town where they walked through the huge gates which were protected day and night by the strongest warriors who hadn't been able to achieve the status of a bodyguard. Lan Fan sighed in nostalgia as she walked over a small bridge before she faced the forest – the forest where she and Ling had played in as little children before everything had gotten so complicated.

In front of the forest, a set of four young children stood, awaiting the arrival of the green-clad woman. There was a tall boy who was picking up flowers with an impish grin on his face – and this grin gave him away. He was a member of the Fang-clan, a clan that specialised in poison, antidotes and medicine. As a young girl, she had often encountered members of the Fang-clan who had attended to her cousin who had been cursed with a weak health and therefore, she was highly aware of the frightening competence this clan possessed. Next to the boy stood another member of the Cho-clan, a boy with another deep green jacket. He grinned about a joke or something else and had his head turned into the direction of the girl in the yellow dress who seemed to be quite annoyed with his antics but her smile gave away that she wasn't that bothered by it while the last member of the team, a bored-looking boy leaned against a tree.

Lan Fan had heard about this team quite a few times when she had been in town. They were supposed to be the most promising crew but all she could see was that they were ridiculously young and far too fragile to face the same terrors she had seen, over and over again.

She turned to leave as she suddenly felt the flare of a familiar chi approaching her fast before her cousin landed on a branch just above her, his eyes trained at the training children.

"It has been a while, Chao," she said as she looked at the same scenery he was gazing at. "How have you been holding up lately, cousin?"

He snorted before he landed next to her, the mask hanging loosely off his shoulder and his katana on his back. "I have just returned from another mission so I am tired," he explained casually as he nodded at her. "But what about you, _empress_?"

She rolled her eyes. "Compared to the life you are leading, it's pretty boring," she replied. "But it's good that it's boring because it means that no one dares to attack my children."

She watched how his face darkened and bit her lip. She had forgotten about the night when he had found an intruder, an assassin from another clan in the nursery of their clan. She had been one of the first to arrive because she had heard the weapons and so she had seen how he had killed the man who had dared to attack their family while he had carried one of the children in the nursery on his arm, threatening the man that he would torture him if the girl was to wake up. It had been a scarily impressive demonstration of raw power and this had been the day when she had learned that her cousin who had always seemed to be one of the weaker members of her clan was in reality one of the fiercest fighters she had ever met.

"I am sorry," she quickly apologised. "I didn't mean to remind you of this."

He raised his hand, the expression of his pale blue eyes unreadable. "Do not apologise," he told her as he took a step in the direction of the village. "Would you join me for tea?"

It was rare for him to invite someone to share his daily tea ritual with him and Lan Fan knew the value of this invitation. For a member of a powerful warrior clan, it was slightly unbecoming to be a proud and quite disagreeable man but somehow, he was respected nonetheless and had achieved more in his first few years of service than she would be able to achieve in a lifetime.

"I would love to join you for tea but I fear that I do not have the clothes required for such a ritual with me at the moment," she said as she bowed her head. She might be the empress but she had hardly participated at formal tea rituals so far. Ling was hardly the kind of man who enjoyed tea – at least not without something decent to eat – and so she had never invested money into a dress or a kimono fitting for tea with her older cousin who had great potential and chances to become the successor of their grandfather.

"It shouldn't depend on a dress whether you join me or not," he told her as they walked back to the village. "And I believe that your sister left a few dresses behind when she … left us. You can try whether you fit in or not … and if they don't fit you, we will have tea without fitting clothes."

She nodded and they walked the rest of the way in silence. She knew how hard it was for him to mention her sister who had backstabbed him by leaving him behind.

The Wei-compound was the second biggest after the Yao-Palace and this was their old home. Chao had never moved out because of his duties as heir to the clan after Jun Li had ran away to become a waitress in Amestris. Lan Fan mused whether he felt caged by the high walls and the eerie silence which always reigned. They were a silent and strangely serene warrior clan after all yet she felt the underlying tension which indicated that beneath the perfect mask, the same old elders who had nearly killed her for losing her arm were still working to protect the clan while they effectively drove away those who could actually protect the clan from its sorrows.

Half an hour later, she wore one of Jun Li's old kimonos which her sister had bought for formal dinners with the family – something the three of them had always loathed because of the overbearing presence of the elders in their pale clothes which were meant to intimidate them. The elders had been their worst enemies – even in their childhood. Lan Fan had no doubt that it had been the elder's doing which had eventually created a huge space in between of Chao and Jun Li.

"You never asked me to join you for tea before," the empress said cheerfully as she watched how he poured tea into the pretty cups he had gotten somewhere since the last time they had met.

"You never were mature enough to understand this before," he told her without missing a beat.

She smiled as she gratefully accepted her cup. "But what prompted this?" she inquired calmly.

"I believe that you are aware of the tension here at the compound," he replied as he looked seriously at her. "It's not easy to explain but the elders are getting restless. Something didn't work out the way it was supposed to and now, they are out for my blood. Not literally, of course. I bet that I could take on all of them at the same time any day."

"They are trying to marry you off to some snotty and bratty noblewoman," she realised as her dark eyes widened slightly.

He nodded solemnly. "So we came to the same conclusion," he stated drily. "I have no proof yet – the elders are sneaky bastards who keep everything hidden until they decide to act after all … but I am getting worried. This issue is threatening my freedom, Lan Fan."

She lowered her gaze as she allowed her eyes to scan his private room. On the walls was a remarkable collected of pictures which showed him along with a girl and she recognised the girl as the best kept secret of the whole clan. "You are doing quite a good job," she said as she raised her eyebrows. "I expected the elders to find ways to cause a terrible accident."

He snorted. "Up to now, my father keeps them in check but when he cannot do this anymore … well, that will be the day when we will face a serious problem," he sighed.

"I know," she agreed.

"I sometimes wonder why it had to come like this," he said as he stared at his tea. "Jun Li and I … why did we have to part ways … if we had kept walking side by side … if we had fought together … could we have end up changing fate, Lan Fan?"

"It's kinda the point of fate that it cannot be changed, cousin," she replied as she wondered why Chao had always been the wisest in their generation. He had accepted his limits a long time ago and she had often envied him for his ability to let go of a dream which would never come true.

"And … what if I intend to defy it?" he inquired as his eyes gleamed mischievously.

"Jun Li tried and failed," the empress shrugged. "And usually, you never succeeded in doing something she already failed at. I don't want to hurt you, cousin, but you do know better than that. To defy the rules … that's something too risky for you at the moment. We talked about this. You are the last one left to uphold the honour of this family. Jun Li did things to stain it … and so did I … my arm is proof of my failure and I will never get rid of it. You, on the other hand, you did nothing wrong. You deserve happiness more than I do. You sacrificed everything for Jun-Jun."

"I didn't do it for her," he stated calmly as he put down his cup. "You of all people should understand this, Lan Fan. We both sacrificed things out of duty, technically, at least. But if we are honest, we did those things because we believed them to be the only way."

"You know why I did those things but I have no clue why you are this selfless all the time," she huffed. "You have been like this for as long as I can remember. You took the punches fate threw at Jun-Jun without a second thought … and never complained…"

"That's because my only goal in life never got hurt by the things I did for her," he replied, carefully drawing circles onto the smooth surface of the wooden table. "I only care about people I love. That's my weakness but that's also my strength. For the sake of those I love, I will fight to the death. To be honest, I often wished that it wouldn't be necessary but as long as there are people who raise their weapons against my family, I won't rest and I will kill them."

A shudder ran down her spine because she remembered just too well she had seen him as someone else than the guy who had bandaged her knees after training because their grandfather hadn't had the nerve to do those things. She had been the third one to reach the nursery that night – right after her grandfather – but by the time they had arrived, it had been already over. Chao had always been a great fighter but he also been the kind of guy who preferred a conversation over a fight. That night, he had killed the intruder without a second thought – because he had attacked someone the young man had sworn to protect.

"I know," the empress said as she leaned back. "You made this quite clear a few years ago."

He sighed as he crossed his arms. "In the end, I am a fighter to the boot … and when she is concerned, I am a lion and strike down whoever dares to harm her," he stated calmly. "You know this feeling, Lan-Lan … the feeling of absolute rage just because someone hurts the one you care for so deeply that you wouldn't care if the world would crash burn … as long as he is safe."

"I can only pray that you know what you are doing," she whispered. "You are a great guy, Chao, and I would hate to see you broken just because of this. It's important to keep promises … but don't take it too far, yes? I would hate to carry you to an untimely grave, Chao."

"I understand your warning … but don't expect me to listen to it," he said softly.


	11. 85: Problem: solved

**Chapter 85: Problem: solved**

* * *

Edward was shocked when he saw Nerissa leaving the cellar. Her jacket, her skin and her hair were red with blood and she didn't move as gracious as usually. He grabbed her upper arm as it looked like she was falling. "What happened?" he asked. "What did you do?"

She sighed deeply while she tried in vain to clean her hands. "I hate blood," she muttered before she looked back at the youngest alchemist. "I did nothing," she said. "I just defended myself when I was attacked by these fools. Can you see what they did to my jacket, Edward? They ruined it!" She waved her newly blood-free hand around in the air to empathise her anger. "It's a designer jacket and the first of these bastards dared to spill his blood on my jacket!"

"Were you able to free the professor?" Jade asked from her place on the couch. Colourful bruises spread all over her pale face and even though Edward didn't like her at all – or at least this was what he told everyone , he had to admit that her stubbornness to stay in the mansion until the very end was something that made her special.

"You worked with my little sister for years and really ask something like that?" Nerissa smirked. "Of course – I mean, a real Hamilton never does anything without success. When we do something, failure is never an option – that's why we stay away from Human Transmutation."

Edward turned away. "May I ask where the professor is, Nerissa?" he asked while he hid his shame from her.

"Oh, she is coming after me as soon as the bad boys are tied up properly," the blonde grinned.

"Why didn't you do it yourself, considering that you beat them up in first place?" Jade asked.

Nerissa blushed. "Like I said, I don't like blood," she muttered while she hid her face behind an old newspaper. "Believe me, it's never a good idea to keep me close to blood, Miss Mustang."

Edward tilted his head. "Does that mean … you faint when you see blood?" he asked while he clapped his hands. "Oh-oh, Miss Nerissa, that means that you are afraid of blood!"

She glared at him. "I am not afraid of it," she said childishly. "I just don't like blood and doctors. I just _hate_ it."

"One question…" he chuckled. "If you are afraid of doctors, how was your time in the … _hospital_?"

She leaned against a wall while she took off her bloodied jacket and revealed an equally crimson blouse. She looked down and sighed deeply. "Life hates me, right?" she muttered.

"How got the blouse beneath the jacket bloody too?" Edward asked. "I mean … it's a good question!"

"It probably bloody when I dragged this one man out of my way," Nerissa sighed. "Really, I need to change before I lose my nerves!" She looked unhappily at her stained clothes. "Those bastards ruined my favourite clothes," she complained. "Really, Elric, that's just your fault! You dragged me once across the country and now my favourite blouse is dirty! Those stains will never come out again!"

Jade rolled her eyes as she made her way towards the blonde. "Well, my mother knows some ways to get these stains out of clothes," she said friendly while she patted Nerissa's shoulder. "But right now, we should grab our victim and get the hell out of here! I called reinforcement but that will take some minutes until they get here … and even though it hurts to admit it: neither I nor Edward is in a constitution where fighting is a good idea." She huffed in annoyance. "We need to go."

"How bad is it?" Nerissa asked while she wiped away the blood on her face with a wet cloth from the kitchen which she had passed on her way back to the others. "We can't risk anything right now…"

Jade looked at Edward. "He should have a light concussion," she replied. "I have just some broken ribs, nothing serious. I just need some days off – and a doctor before a rib can pierce my lungs – because that could be a little bit more serious injury than I care for at the moment."

Nerissa bit her lower lip. "Can you still walk?" she asked while she stopped cleaning herself for a moment. Her sapphire blue eyes were directed at the younger woman and she seemed worried.

"Never underestimate me," Jade said but even though she seemed to stand as strong as always, her eyes betrayed the pain she was suffering. "It takes more to take me out than just some broken ribs. I will be back in a short time…" she hissed in pain as she moved before she took a grip on a little table behind her. "Damn my bones!" she cursed. "Why do they always break that easily? That's unfair!"

The very next second, two persons entered the room. The first one was a red-haired woman with deep green eyes who came from the cellar. She wore an emerald dress beneath a black robe. She was the previously kidnapped lady, Professor Catherina D'Artagan. The man who came from the outside was black-haired and wore a black suit with a red shirt. His emerald eyes flickered over everyone in the room before they remained on Jade who looked down. His name was Philippe Abel Mustang.

"Phil!" Jade exclaimed and tried to walk over to him but the pain forced her down on her knees. She rolled her eyes as she forced herself to get up again. "You aren't even supposed to be here!" she said.

He picked her up and grinned down at her as he carried her bridal-style over to the couch. "You called and said that you need reinforcement," he said. "I was present in WestCity and so I am here not need to complain."

She huffed. "You aren't supposed to be here, no matter what the guys in WestCity said!"

He kissed her forehead. "I just don't want to lose you, princess," he said.

"You are just a cute pair of twins," the professor said while she let her head rotate in order to get rid of the tension in her shoulders and her neck. "Well, guys, I would agree with whoever said that we should get out of here. This will be hell if we don't leave now!"

* * *

The children were already asleep when Riza entered Roy's study where he sat on a chair with both feet on the desk while he played a wistful melody on his old guitar. She stopped behind him and rested her hands on his shoulders. "It's a wonderful night, isn't it?" she muttered lowly while she looked at the silver moon above them. "Full moon … no wonder that you can't sleep, Roy … you are like Father…"

He chuckled darkly. "No, I am tired," he yawned. "I just don't want to go to bed until I figure out this part of the song." He picked up a sheet of paper and waved it around. "No matter how hard I try, this song sounds like – excuse my language – crap … and that's impossible. I have to make a mistake."

She took the papers away from him and sighed as she had scanned them all. "Roy," she said while she patted his head. "You are making no mistakes. This song is obviously not meant to sound good." She raised her gaze. "Who gave you these papers?"

"I kinda stole them from Lynn," he admitted. "But I meant no harm! Lynn took every single melody Rena ever composed after the princess fell down – and I wanted just one … as a reminder, you know?"

His wife sighed deeply. "That makes sense," she said. "Listen, Roy, the reason why this melody will always sound a little bit strange is that it is Serena's code. While Father and his sister became tattoo artists in order to protect their legacy and Kay wrote her book, Serena used music to hide her ideas."

"How do you know?" he asked while he hugged her tightly with his free arm.

She chuckled. "It's easy to figure out when you keep an eye on the alchemists who are around," she said. "I know that Jade uses choreographies from her favourite ballet and that Phil's manuscript looks probably like he planned a football match. Even State Alchemists are predictable after all, Roy…"

He laughed while he kissed her hand. "I married a very smart woman after all," he said seriously.

"Oh, did I meet her?" Riza asked while she tried hard to keep her collected and serious face.

"Well, I believe you meet her every time when you look into a mirror," he grinned and put down his guitar to pull her on his lap to nuzzle her neck. "She has long blond hair, deep brown eyes which always remind me of chocolate and a wonderful, smooth and pale skin." He kissed her nose. "Oh, and her name is Riza Hawkeye. I believe you and her work together…"

She started to laugh and he held her close while he tickled her. "Stop it!" she giggled. "Please, Roy!"

He grinned evilly before he pouted as one of the twins started to cry. "I am on baby duty tonight, right?" he yawned as he got up. "Well, I will go and check on … hmh … I think it's Helena. I bet that it is Lynn's legacy that made her cry now. Lynn never let me have my fun…"

"She was always a responsible little girl," Riza chuckled while she brushed back her hair. "Well, I am going back to bed. Bendix asked me to go shopping for some baby clothes with him tomorrow and I really don't want to fall asleep in the store."

"Did they finally come to a decision how to call their little boy?" Roy asked while they made their way down the hallway. "The last I heard from Hughes was that Olivier wanted to call him Louis…"

"Yes, she considered that but Bendix talked her out of it," his wife replied while she opened their bedroom door. "And I am happy for the child that he did it."

"He risked life and limb to protect his son … that's heroic!" Roy exclaimed. "The normal Olivier hates it when people tell her that her ideas are bad … the pregnant Olivier downright murders everyone who dares to suggest that there could be better ideas than hers!"

"Don't underestimate Ben," Riza said with a smirk. "He is very subtle when he really wants something and he dropped hints for weeks. Now Olivier told me yesterday that they will call their son Lars, after her favourite character from An Eternal Love – and that is also the name Bendix wanted from the very beginning, so they are both really happy."

"Since you mentioned their happiness…" Roy smirked back at her. "Phil suspects that they are using drugs or something like that because their all-time grin is getting a little bit scary by now."

"Laila and Vicky told me that Olivier was a little bit depressed today when her pen broke," Riza said before she wrapped her arms around him and kissed him. "Good night, Roy."

He smiled gently at her. "Good night, Riza," he said softly.

* * *

Olivier's eyebrows formed a single line across her forehead as she stared at Edward and Jade. Then, the first-in-command sighed deeply as she started to pace around in the room. "On the bright side," the blond woman said, "we could improve our relationship with the Cretan government because of your little _well-who-cares-for-the-rules-so-let's-us-act-without-thinking-trip._ But on the other hand, I have trouble with the University of Lutetia because you beat up half of their best researchers!"

Edward raised his hand. "Technically, General Armstrong, it wasn't us who beat them up," he said. "As much as it hurts to admit it: Mustang and I were out of action seconds after the second blow, so Miss Nerissa Hawkeye took care of the bad guys…"

An icy glare shut him up before Olivier turned towards Jade. "Soul, what do you say?" she asked.

"We made some mistakes," Jade said carefully, "and I understand your worries, madam, but you need to see that we knew by the time we entered the building that the men were the kidnappers of Madame D'Artagan and at that moment, my worries were directed at the consequences for our ties with Creta if the Professor would die in our country … in the mansion of a former general nonetheless."

"Well said, Breeze Soul," Olivier said crisply.

"Of course, we were aware that it could get us in trouble to beat up a bunch of foreigners, especially if they would say later on that we were the ones who attacked first, so I went through the standards to ensure that my partners and I wouldn't get in trouble," the dark-haired woman went on. "I called the Western Headquarter to get reinforcements since I had no idea how strong or weak our opponents would be. Elric supported me during this time and kept an eye on my back."

"I understand," Olivier said with a nod. "You are both dismissed, Elric and Mustang."

"Understood, madam," Jade said while she saluted and left while she dragged Edward behind her.

"What the hell was that?" the blond man asked confused. "I thought you said that Armstrong wouldn't give us any trouble because of the broken noses Nerissa caused!"

"It wasn't Olivier who wanted us to explain why we did what we did," Jade replied. "Did you see the creepy guy in the corner? That was Henry Douglas, newly reinstated in the military," she whispered as they passed a group of men from the investigation department. "He doesn't like me much and I guess that he dislikes you too. He was thrown out a year ago, after the Promised Day, when he tried to blame the death of Major Hamilton and Captain Force on me but he somehow got his position back."

"And how could he make Olivier play the role of the bad cop?" Edward asked.

Jade rolled her eyes. "If more people would know that Olivier is a great person to talk to, she would lose a good part of her influence. Does that answer your question?"


	12. 86: Tension

**Chapter 86: Tension**

* * *

"Welcome to the newest radio show of Radio Capital! Today, we have a very special guest in our studio: the first-in-command, General Olivier Armstrong-Llewellyn," the young man called Timothy Murphy announced while the blonde took place. "General, you support the application of your former rival, Roy Mustang, instead of making an own effort to become chancellor next week…"

"That's correct," Olivier replied. "I support Roy since I believe in his idea of a better Amestris.  
Because, honestly, so many people are always annoyed … they always complain and wonder why no one is actually doing something against all the problems. The message we as high-ranking officers have for those people is easy: you don't have to accept what isn't right with you as long as your head has more functions than just to wear a cap. We don't say that it is the fault of the people that this country is the way it is and we accept that the wars took a certain toll from this country but we say that we blame all the people don't try to create a better world. It isn't true that change and progress cannot be reached.  
Those who tell stuff like that are afraid of the change – and those who want the progress are terrorists in their eyes." She hesitated for a moment. "In my eyes, everyone who fears the change signs the death sentence for our country. So, I invite the people to discuss with us. The time when a bunch of old man decided about our fate behind closed doors is over and now, everyone is allowed to participate in the change. I request discussion because technically, everyone in our country is tolerant. Words are the way to a better life, no weapons. So, please, citizens of Amestris: go out on the street, go out and protest against the unfairness in this country … because everyone who drops his banner now, loses. Next Saturday, we want to hear all your voices … because every single voice counts."

Timothy smiled at her. "General, is it true that Major General Mustang considers to change the date of the Veterans Day after his election?" he asked while he frowned a little bit.

She nodded. "Well, I believe that every soldier can understand this idea. Usually, the Veterans Day is in winter und we are all obliged to wear dress uniform. Especially the women aren't so happy because of the short skirts," she said smoothly. "It was my husband's suggestion to change the date to the second of October because of the risk to fall ill afterwards. The new date is really popular with many women in the military. Just before I came to my interview, I spoke with Captain Ross and she agreed that it's a better date for this important day with all the parades…"

* * *

"She is doing a great job," Jade said. She was in her office and in front of her sat her personal assistant for the week, Major Edward Elric, who wasn't happy about the current arrangement at all.

"Yes, that's true," he muttered while he started to pace around. "I just wonder that you didn't use the chance to become even more popular, Mustang. And the audience would have loved you once more…"

She raised her eyebrow and smirked. "I wasn't aware that I ever lost the love of the people," she said while she walked over to her window. "Don't forget, Edward: I was already playing in the same league with the big boys when you were still a child. Before I became a state alchemist, I was already famous."

"So, if your life was all fun and great, why are you still here? Your boyfriend just waits for a chance to drag you to Aerugo and to make you his queen," he said. "So … where is your problem, Mustang?"

She sighed in annoyance. "You are my main problem at the moment – besides my broken rips…"

He glared at her. "You are the most evil person in the military, Mustang," he said. "I always thought that your cousin would be the devil but now I know that you are far worse than him. Compared to you, the Major General is a nice boy … and I would rather be his personal assistant than yours!"

Jade grinned. "Well, I am sure that I can arrange something like that," she said smugly, "but that would also mean that you need to babysit his kids and even though they are cute, they can be pretty mean."

She of all people would know since she often kept an eye on the children. She had warned Riza and Roy that Helena and Rachel would probably end up as infamous troublemakers, not unlike Phil and Jade when they were younger and even wilder.

"I would rather be tortured by tiny children than to follow your orders, Mustang," Edward told her.

She chuckled, unimpressed by his words as always. "You know, Edward, no one forced you to stay in the army and you could always get an honourable discharge if it is so terrible for you to stay…"

"If it weren't for the paperwork I would have to do if I would leave, I would be gone long ago," he snapped at her, "but you need to rub it into my face that you have probably already a position in your cousin's cabinet, right? I know that you have probably the brighter future, Mustang, especially since your boyfriend absolutely adores you and would get the stars from the sky for you if necessary … but do you have to remind me of that every single day I work for you? Yes, you are an incredibly lucky girl that will be the queen of Aerugo one day … but it's just depressing for people like me!"

She smirked at him. "Oh, Edward," she said while she patted his shoulder. "I never knew that you want to be the queen of Aerugo. That's so … manly…"

"You are mocking me again, Mustang?" he hissed.

She nodded. "Relax a little bit … I just want to have a little more fun at work…" She smiled before she suddenly collapsed onto the couch in her office. "Crap…" she muttered. "My side…"

Edward sighed deeply. "I'll call Knox, alright?" he asked.

* * *

The next Saturday, the hall above the chamber of parliament was full with the group around Roy. Jun Li was pacing around while she tried to calm herself down a little bit. Cai clung to her skirt and after three minutes, she picked him up and hugged him tightly. Laila and Nick were watching their sister while she tried to calculate something. Olivier was eating her fourth bar of chocolate. Riza had the twins on her lap while Roy held her hand. Bendix stood on the window and stared outside with his usually serious face. Jade had her arms crossed and glared at everyone who came too close to her because her injury had weakened her considerably and she hated being weak more than anything else. Her boyfriend stood behind her and Claudio looked lovingly at Jade. Phil and Bea had just come back from their trip to the buffet and carried plates with pudding and cake. Everyone in the room could feel the tension, even Edward and Alphonse who had returned from Xing along with Mei to live in Resembool from now on. All of them were nervous because behind closed doors, people were counting the votes from the election.

Charlotte jumped onto her feet and started to pace around while her face betrayed her worries. The lady wore an emerald skirt, a white blouse and a golden blazer and looked beautiful as usual. She made her way to her son and looked up to him. "Ben…" she muttered.

He looked at her and nodded slightly. They had a close relationship and Bendix had vowed once unconditional obedience to his mother. "It's time for the change," he said calmly while he stroked her extended hand. "Don't worry, mother. Amestris won't go down that easily; I will make sure of it."

"Thank you, son," she said with an elegant bow of her head before she rolled her eyes in annoyance. "I believe that torture isn't allowed since one year or so … so why don't they tell us the result of the election?" she asked while she glared at the door.

The very same second, the door was opened and a man in black suit entered. "Ladies and Gentlemen," he said smoothly, "I am glad to tell you the result of the election."


	13. 87: Chancellor

**Chapter 87: Chancellor**

* * *

Roy grabbed Riza's hand and bit his lower lip while he waited for the result. If he had failed, he had no idea how to explain it to the others. They had all trusted him to get it right this time around … and some of his best friends had died along the way. Yes, they had died because they had known too much about the fact that something was wrong and that the homunculi were plotting something but they would never have researched these dangerous things if it hadn't been for him. In a way, he had killed all of them. Serena, the sweet and silent musician … Lynn, the one who had been mean to the ones she had loved the most … Martin, the goofy man with the incredible memory … Charles, the optimist who had always smiled in spite of the situation … and Kay, the one who had been one of the best alchemists he had ever met. If he would have become chancellor, he would have failed them worse than the ones who had made it – miraculously – out alive … even though it had been pure luck sometimes.

Charlotte's hand wrapped itself around her husband's wrist while the former first lady stared at the man in the doorway. She had been the one who had revived her father's plan of a democracy and she would never be able to look into the mirror if her plan to make her grandson-in-law chancellor had failed. She had opened the way for this election by convincing her husband to give up his post and if she had done this for nothing, she would throw a fit – and being a former first daughter, she was very talented at throwing a fit. Being a stubborn little girl had been part of her act for years after all.

Abigail, Izumi and Jade sat on a couch and the three strongest female alchemists of Amestris looked like they would kill Roy if he had failed since they had all counted on him. Abigail couldn't allow her nephew to soil her twin brother's memory, Izumi was still unhappy about Roy's decision to become a state alchemist (especially since she blamed him of luring Jade, Phil and Edward into the same trap) and Jade simply expected her cousin to be always the best in everything, so she basically couldn't allow him to fail at anything … especially since he had promised her a better office than her current one.

Edward inwardly hoped that Roy hadn't made it because he had forgotten the 520 cenz he owed the Flame Alchemist at home and he didn't want to look unprepared … because he didn't want his two Teachers or his superior to tell him off for forgetting something that important.

Jun Li on the other hand hoped that her best customer had made it because her old master had already painted the sign 'The chancellor's favourite restaurant' for the _Golden Dragon I._ and furthermore, Roy Mustang would make sure that the ties between Amestris and Xing would stay on this good level.

Cai was sure that his future father-in-law (because he would _so_ marry Laila later on in his life) had won the election because he was Laila's father – and that made him awesome by default … and his big brother had told him that awesomeness was an important quality of a good leader.

Victoria, however, was probably one of the few who happened to know the result before the man could say anything because she had made a very important realisation: all the other candidates were dumb and – according to her – very ugly. She had also realised that the whole North still supported Olivier's decisions because they were grateful for her former protection while her adoptive father was still a hero in the Eastern regions … and furthermore: Roy Mustang was the only one of the candidates who had had the support of such a huge family because somehow, he was related through the marriages of the last few years to nearly all the influential families of Amestris.

Edward carefully tapped Jade's shoulder as he realised that his former superior had most likely won the election. "Do you have 520 cenz with you?" he asked under his breath.

She rolled her eyes. "I never leave the house without money," she said before she handed him 600 cenz. "Do whatever you want to do with it. 600 cenz more or less doesn't make me a poor woman."

He checked the serial numbers and a wide grin appeared on his face before he showed them to his brother. "Look at this, Al," he said. "Soul gave me exactly the same coins her cousin gave me before!"

Alphonse raised one eyebrow. "Do you think she knows about the deal?" he asked while he looked at the dark-haired woman who was currently intimidating the waitress who had flirted with Claudio.

"She has a way of knowing basically everything – exactly like Teacher," Edward said. "It's _scary_."

The man in the doorway cleared his throat. "I congratulate you, Mr Mustang, to becoming chancellor," he said plainly and wanted to say something more but it drowned among the cheering of the Pro-Roy -Mustang-party. Jade squealed in such a high-pitched voice that Edward realised two things. First: whoever had sat next to Jade had probably gotten deaf. And secondly: she would have a sore throat the next day from all her squealing and yelling.

Not that he cared, of course.

Roy gulped slowly while he got up and ran one hair through his hair before he found himself tackled by nine children: Laila, Cai, Victoria, Nick, Elicia, Helena, Rachel, Frederic and Gregor (but the four youngest just followed the example of their older siblings.) "Jun Li, take them off!" he exclaimed from underneath the kids. "Please – they are breaking my ribs and I can't breathe with them on my chest! I beg you!" he yelled. Usually, he would have asked Jade to free him but since her ribs were still broken, it wouldn't be the best idea ever and would just get him into trouble with Phil and Abigail.

The Xingese woman sighed deeply before she grabbed Cai's ankles and pulled him away from the newly-elected chancellor of Amestris before she softly reprimanded him in her own language. As soon as he looked guilty, she handed him over to Lei who had become her shadow once more and repeated the action with the rest of the children before she helped Roy up.

"Thank you, Jun Li," he said with a bow before he headed over to his wife who hadn't been able to help him because she had been hugged by Winry, Rebecca and Mei who hadn't let go of her.

"Congratulation, Mustang," Olivier said with a half smile which was more than he usually got from her.

"Thank you, Armstrong," he said with a bow of his head.

"Technically, it's Armstrong-Llewellyn," she said sweetly while he patted his head. "And don't forget who held the speech that pushed your popularity to unknown levels, yes?"

"How could I ever forget your speech?" he asked with a smirk. "Well, thanks for everything."

She rolled her eyes. "Even though I still think that Riza could do much better: you are somehow a part of my family," she said before she shuddered. "Well, good job, Mustang."

Edward grinned widely at Roy as he held out the money. "You really did it," he said. "Here, your money … you should buy some chocolate for your kids from it. And well, now I owe Soul 600 cenz…"

"Oh, if you want to blackmail her too…" Roy winked at the younger alchemist. "Her dream is to be able to erase the scars from her body … just to give you some inspiration…"

The blonde chuckled while he looked at the female state alchemist who wore her usual black clothes with a jade green ribbon in her hair then he looked back at Roy. "Why is she always wearing black or green when she isn't on duty?" he asked. "It's not extremely surprising to see her in black…"

"The last one who asked her ended up in hospital and nearly died from suffocation," Roy warned. "I am sure that she has her reasons but I will never ask."

Riza finally reached him and hugged him tightly. "You made it…" she whispered. "You really made it…"

**"We** made it," he corrected her softly. **"We** made really it."

"I really don't want to disturb you," Olivier said slowly, "but you will have to hold a speech."

"She's right," Jade said while she fixed her ribbon once more. Her dark hair was growing out once more and nearly brushed her fragile shoulders. No one ever got the reason for her strange behaviour. She let her hair grow until it reached her hip before she would cut it drastically after a strange incident. She had never explained why she did this but Roy had noticed that she was calmer with short hair and not so aggressive than with long hair.

"It's true," Riza agreed. "Well, let's go, Roy."

* * *

Edward noticed the shadow before anyone else could see it and gently tapped Nerissa's tense shoulder. The blond alchemist who excelled in Water Alchemy and some other things looked down at him with a frown. "What's the matter?" she asked lowly.

"I believe I saw someone," he said. "No regular uniform … but he carried a rifle…"

She sighed deeply. "You are honestly bad news, Elric," she said. "Well, Roy will forgive us when we ditch his speech to dispose an assassin. And after all: it wouldn't be good for his career when someone kills him today, right?" she headed towards the next door. "And we are way too _awe-inspiring_ to allow some crazy lunatic to murder the chancellor today, right?"

"For a former lunatic, you are making surely a lot of sense," Edward said with a grin. "Well, when we can't allow it, we should hurry up a little bit and get back in time for the dinner the stuff of The Golden Dragon is cooking right now. It would be a sin to miss out the chop suey!"

She laughed softly as her hair flew around her head in the cold night air. "It feels great to be back," she said as she looked over the town. "Central isn't the most beautiful city, that would be Lionnenburg in the West, but the capital is always worth the way … especially at night…"

* * *

The assassin had his rifle directed at Roy Mustang and was about to pull the trigger when a somewhat short blond-haired man and a much taller but also blond woman appeared … and they didn't look like they had come for a polite conversation. The woman held up an icicle and glared dangerously at him while the man had crossed his arms.

"Put the rifle down before we have to hurt you," the man said.

"Just two weak Amestrians against me who _survived_ the slaughter of my people?" the man asked.

"Don't underestimate us," the woman said with a devilish smile. "The last ones who messed with us are still in hospital … and even though you may have survived Ishbal through your luck, well, if you fight us, you will see why my sisters feared me more than anyone else … and I heard that most people feared Kay." She raised her head and her bangs fell back to uncover her face. "So … if you dare, bring it on. I will even step back from using alchemy to make it fairer…"

She could afford to play it fair because she had trained under Catherina D'Artagan for years and that woman was a gifted fighter even without her alchemy.

The Ishbalan stared at her before he exhaled. "Well, considering your arrogance, I am really surprised that you didn't get yourself killed yet," he said while he aimed his rifle at her. "And the only reason why it makes sense for you to mention sisters would be that you are related to the Hamilton-sisters…"

"I am the oldest one … and the only one who is still standing," she said while she took a kunai from her pocket. "You can always surrender now before we beat you up … and we just got back to work."

The blond boy next to her nodded seriously. "Nessa just returned from beating up a group of special agents from Creta," he said, "and as you can see, she didn't get injured. And she is always strong."

"I'll see a fight in which a little girl like her defeats me, boy," the assassin said. "She has no gun."

"Because I am no coward," she said with a sweet smile. "Bring it on, will you?"

Hardly anyone was stupid enough to attack her but this guy was different and she had to avoid a first bullet. She moved faster than usually but she wasn't fast enough as the assassin was able to grab her hair and hold her down while he looked for a way to get Edward down to. The Fullmetal Alchemist, however, was a little bit more worried for his comrade who would have a terrible headache the next day. He was about to attack openly when Nerissa shook her head a little bit.

"Why not?" he asked as he stopped his steps and watched her unhappily.

She smirked while she raised the hand with the knife to her head. "Easiest rule," she said calmly while the blade got closer and closer to the place where the man held her down. "I got myself in trouble, so I get myself out of trouble too. You can't endanger yourself." With these wise words, she cut off a good deal of her hair and jumped away. "The long hair was getting on my nerves anyway," she stated.

Edward shook his head at her usual casualness and pulled her out of the way. "Alright, what do you suggest, Master of Disaster?" he asked with a wide grin.

Her sapphire eyes widened and she freed herself from his grasp before she pushed him away from her. He looked up and saw how she held her shoulder while blood covered her hands. On the floor, next to her feet, lay a knife that had obviously stuck in her flesh seconds before. She looked down but her anger radiated from her like the light from the sun. Her mutilated hair barely touched her chest, unlike the former golden locks that had touched her hip. She glared at the man before she looked at Edward and exhaled deeply. "Do whatever you have to do but don't kill him if you can avoid it. The last thing Roy can need is a state alchemist murdering a member of an ethnic minority."

Edward nodded before he gracefully avoided the blow that came for him and kicked with his automail-leg. "But why did you take the blow for me?" he asked, knowing that the knife hadn't been aimed at her but at him. "Did you forget how mean I was to you? It's crazy that you risk your health for me!"

She rolled her eyes while she slowly sat down and leaned against a wall. "I am the insane one, did you forget?" she chuckled weakly. "Well, if you lose and my sacrifice is in vain, I murder you personally."

"Understood," he said and his next attack knocked the man out cold. "How was that, Hamilton?"

She rolled her eyes. Tie him up, I will bring him to Ishbal in the morning," she said. "I can't imagine that the people there will be happy about this."

* * *

Riza frowned at Nerissa when the older women finally entered the restaurant where everyone else was already enjoying the party. The blonde's previously neat blue dress with the golden flower on the side was a little bit dirty and torn. A white bandage covered the alchemist's shoulder and her once perfectly styled golden mane was shaggy and a good deal shorter than before. The chancellor's wife dragged her cousin away from the party and glared up at her. "What the hell happened?" she hissed.

"Elric and I got in a little argument with a stupid assassin who tried to kill your darling," the former lunatic said while she rubbed her aching shoulder. "Well, we taught the guy that no one messes with us and gets away unpunished…" She looked at the formerly dark city with a certain distance. Central City wasn't silent and peaceful any longer – not since the people had heard of the result of the election. "I'll have to deliver a package to Ishbal in the morning," she added while she tapped her chin before she raised one of her pale eyebrows. "Don't worry, Riza," she smiled. "We didn't kill that person … but I believe that he will think twice the next time before he messes with one of us…"

"Just try not to get in trouble, yes?" Riza gently touched her cousin's shoulder. "No one of us wants you to have to go back to the hospital, Nessa … and I can imagine that your sisters would yell at me if I would allow something like that. We know that you mean no harm … but even though we kept the whole issue under the wraps so far, some people out there know about your … little problem…"

Nerissa just smiled at her as she patted Riza's hand. "Believe me, no one knows the risks better than me," she said calmly. "And regarding my problem … during the therapy, I got to accept a lot of things that were bothering me since many years." She sighed. "I am sorry for worrying and scaring all of you so much, Riza, but I can hardly remember anything from that time. It's like … I was someone else … a person I never wanted to be … a person no one ever wanted to become…"

"I never thought that I would say that, Nessa, but … you are really alright," Riza said with a smile. "Well, I need to go and keep Roy and Jean from drinking themselves into pure dumbness…"

Her cousin chuckled while she licked her lips. "I could always remove the alcohol from the wine," she said with a smirk that could have rivalled Kay's when the redhead had been up to something.

Riza froze before she looked at the stars above them. "Do you think they would have been here … if they had been able too?" she asked while she wrapped her scarf closer around her shoulders.

"I can hardly remember them…" Nerissa said softly. "…but if they were really Roy's friends, they would have stood in the first row … and I can imagine that Lynn would have punched everyone who would have dared to vote for someone else than Roy … she was like that … looking innocent but being evil inside…" She sighed deeply. "Stupid little girl," she said with a fond little smile on her face.

"If someone would have told me some years ago that we would speak like that without trying to kill each other, I would have believed the person was insane," Riza admitted. "You always seemed … so far away from everything … so much better than all of us together … you excelled at everything…"

Nerissa sighed deeply as she gazed at the stars. "The ones who lost their twins are still standing strong while the rest fell down," she stated with a dark smile around her lips. "No, I won't complain that I am still alive even though there were times when I wished that I would drop dead. To know that I am the last one out of four who survived even with the catastrophic odds I had … it's insane if you ask me."

Riza smiled at her. "You would know about insanity, wouldn't you?" she asked with a wink. "No, we really shouldn't talk about the past. I believe that they wouldn't have wanted us to think of them when we should celebrate. They left us gifts, wonderful … precious gifts … they allowed us to make it out alive … we didn't kill you when you kidnapped Laila because I knew that Kay would never have forgiven me if we would kill someone who had been created by her … she always blamed herself for everything what happened to you … claimed that she was responsible for what became of you…"

Nerissa shook her head while she sighed once more. She suddenly realised that she kept sighing that night. "Stupid younger sister," she muttered while she ran one hand through her shaggy hair. "Well, every single one of us has this little crack, right? And self-hatred is the one we share…"

Riza nodded. "How did you feel when the doctors finally released you?" she asked while they sat down on the outside. Roy, Jean and the wine were forgotten for a moment, put aside for a little talk between the both last remaining cousins, the last ones who had been left from the original five Hawkeye-girls.

Nerissa shrugged while she rested her head against the rough wall behind her. "Like I was born again," she finally said. "I never thought that I would get a second chance, a second trial to get my life back on track … but when they offered me the chance … I felt for a moment like I was stepping back into the light." She wiped away a stray tear. "It's too bad that I realised too late that family is something I started to appreciate than I had nearly nothing left of it."

Riza patted her shoulder. "I am still there," she said calmly. "And just so you know: Kay always knew that you would come around one day. And since she was always forgiving, I believe that you should stop hating yourself. Life is too short for any regrets."

Nerissa chuckled weakly before she pointed her finger at Roy . "Go and play with your husband, Riza," she said. "I stay a little bit outside … it's too hot for me inside, you know?"

The younger blonde patted her head. "You can come inside if you want to," she said calmly.

Nerissa smiled at her. "No, I believe that I am going home," she said while she got up. "This night belongs to the new chancellor … and not my new hairstyle. I will go to bed. It's late for me."

* * *

It was Edward who caught up with the older blond woman when she was leaving. He ran after her for some minutes before he grabbed her upper arm, momentarily forgetting her injury. She winced in pain and he released her. "I am sorry," he said while they sat down on a close bench. "Why are you leaving? The party barely begun and I would have guessed that you could enjoy it."

"Not with an injured shoulder," she said and wrapped her good arm around her legs. "How are you?"

"I wasn't stabbed by some lunatic," he said as he leaned back. "I have to compliment you … not everyone would recover that fast. What kind of painkiller did they give you?"

"The ones that make you see funny things," she said with a shrug. "And I keep ignoring a good deal of the pain because it doesn't fit me to complain about a simple injury like that."

He laughed. "You are heading eastwards tomorrow, right?" he asked. "To deliver the package to the elders there … why didn't we bring him to a usual prison? It would have been easier…"

"The last thing the Pro-Ishbal-Politic needs at the moment is an Ishbalan prisoner who wanted to assassinate the new chancellor," she said. "And I am sure that his elders will have a neat and clean solution for the problem. No one but the two of us and Riza will ever know about it. It will be like it never happened and no one will ever suspect that there was some kind of incident."

He nodded slowly. "Why didn't you kill him when you had the chance? It would have prevented your injury and your hair would be still longer…" he said while he looked at her.

She smiled at her knees. "It's hardly my place to judge who deserves to live and who can die," she said as she looked up, "and my hair will grow again. The injury on my shoulder will be nothing but a scar in some weeks and eventually, it will fade. If I had killed him, the blood would have never faded … and it could have easily started another war, you know?"


	14. 88: Ishbal Amestris Xing

**Chapter 88: Ishbal Amestris Xing**

* * *

Victoria bit her lower lip while she frowned deeply at the wound on Laila's knee. "What the hell did you do to yourself this time?" she asked while she felt a headache coming. Even though Victoria was a little bit younger than the blonde, she sometimes felt like she was at least five years older than Laila who was most of the time unable to walk five metres without somehow hurting herself - according to the redhead at least.

"I tripped over Nick's ball," Laila said while she pressed her fingernails into her palms. "Make it stop!"

The redhead glared at her brother who was kicking around the football with Elicia and Cai before she returned her attention to her sister's wound. "What would you do without me, Laila?" she asked as she disinfected the injury. "Honestly, pay more attention to yourself! You have just one body!"

Laila winced in pain. "It burns!" she exclaimed. "Vicky, make it stop, please!"

"You know that Riza will kill me if she ever hears that I am using alchemy to close your wounds," the younger girl muttered as she looked around. The playground, however, was empty since most of the other students were still taking their mid-term exams. The red-haired girl carefully drew an array on the floor and concentrated. She had excelled her alchemy-classes with Jade and since Laila often hurt herself, she had a lot of experience by now. But it still amazed her to see how the wound closed itself.

The blonde exhaled before she hugged her saviour. "Thank you so much, Vicky," she said. "You are the best out of us! Why can you already transmute that well?"

Victoria pressed her lips together before she rolled up her sleeve and showed her flawless forearm to her sister. "You remember that I accidentally cut myself some weeks ago, right?" she asked. "Well, if I had let it heal on the normal way, I would have gotten a scar … and that would have been so, so dumb. I have nothing against the scars I got so far … but I didn't want a scar to remind me of my clumsiness when it comes to handicrafts. That would have been embarrassing for someone who won a race with hurt knees." She shrugged. "Well, so I decided to try it. If it would have failed, it would have been my own body, so it was only me who carried the risk."

* * *

Miles and Scar were eating their lunch than one of their fellow Ishbalans barged into their tent. "Brothers, an amestrian woman demands an audience with you! She brings a slightly injured brother and is severely injured herself! She is very tall and … unarmed from what I saw, so she is maybe an alchemist!" he exclaimed. "She didn't want to give a name … but she says that it is urgent…"

Miles frowned. "Describe her a little bit more," he said while he tapped impatient rhythms onto the rough surface of the table. "Did she look like a soldier … or like a civilian?"

"To tell the truth, from what I saw, I would have said that Ishbala sent us an angel," the messenger said as he looked down. "But from what I heard, she has to impersonate devil himself. She cursed a lot than we accidentally hit her shoulder than we tried to get out of her what she wants here … and she knocked out some of our guards with a simple punch."

"That would answer why she didn't have any weapons with her," Scar stated while he took a sip of his tea and grinned slightly. "And honestly, the warriors were knocked out by a woman without a weapon who also just came from Ishbala-knows-where and should be a little bit tired?"

The very moment, the entrance to the tent was ripped open and a woman with the face of an angel walked straight into the tent while she dragged one Ishbalan with her. She looked around in the tent before she folded her arms in front of her chest. "I believe that everyone here heard who became the first chancellor of Amestris two days ago," she said darkly while she started to pace around in the room. "And I am also sure that it was in your interest that the press didn't hear of the assassin who tried to kill Mustang, right?" she tapped her chin. "Well, be happy that Elric and I were there to keep that little friend from killing the new chancellor … because there would have been nothing left of Ishbal if the wrong people would have heard of the incident." She snorted. "I don't think I ever met such a bad assassin before," she added. "I really hope that no one trained this failure."

Scar pushed away his food tray and sighed. "Excuse me, Miss, but who are you?" he asked. "Who are you working for and why don't we have you in our files yet?"

She huffed. "The name shouldn't matter," she said, "and I work for no one. I just would gain nothing from another war, so I did my best to prevent it." She bit her lower lip. "Though I have to admit that it was Elric who knocked this guy out first after I took a slight blow towards my shoulder," she added.

The men saw the fact that her previously probably white bandage was getting redder and redder with every passing moment and somehow they assumed that the blow hadn't been as slight as she claimed.

Miles suddenly narrowed his red eyes. "Wait a second…" he said slowly. "I saw your face somewhere."

She hissed as her foot moved backwards to bring herself into a position to fight back easily. "So?"

* * *

Roy walked around in his new office while the rest of his cabinet stood in a neat row in front of his desk.  
There was Jade who he had hired as Minister for Science (and that made her responsible for all the state alchemists. She had thrown a fit when she had realised this).  
Next to her stood her younger brother, the new Attaché for Humanism in Economy who was very proud of his posh title.  
Olivier had gotten what she had wanted: the post as Foreign Minister. (Drachma had already congratulated.)  
Her husband was Minister of the Interior and very happy with the job so far.  
Riza had become Minister for Families and Social Issues while a very grumpy and unhappy Jean had become Health Minister (and for this job [and to keep Rebecca as his fiancée], he had had to stop his smoking forever. He had been livid.)  
Roy had been more than happy with his crew but he knew that there wouldn't be many state alchemists in the future for Jade's evil plan to raise the difficulty of the written examination. She had been one of the few who had been able to get every single question right (the last proof Roy and Phil had needed to be sure that she wasn't human) and she would demand the same level from everyone who would try to get a job.

"…I still don't get why I have to hand over the state alchemists to Jade," Olivier said once more.

Her dark-haired friend smirked widely. "Oh, I never noticed that you actually want to spend time with your little brother," she said innocently. "Furthermore: it wouldn't have been so great if the military would have kept the state alchemists when we want to be a peaceful country know." She winked. "And I will kill the next reporter who asks me if my relationship with Claudio has political reasons."

It was the most annoying rumour so far and Olivier had offered more than once to beat the next one up who would mention it – because she could it always blame on her pregnancy. Everyone felt with Jade who suffered more than she let on and those who really knew her saw the hurt expression in her eyes.

"Try to tell yourself that these guys aren't worth it, sis," Phil said caringly while he wrapped his arms around her and held her in a protecting embrace. "They are just jealous of you because you are a very sweet girl who scored herself a really decent boyfriend who is also influential."

He might not really approve of this relationship himself because Jade had always been able to attract the guys who were basically insane enough to make Nerissa in one of her little phases look perfectly normal. He still shuddered when he thought of the strange guy who had been obsessed with his sister when they had been younger. That guy had been very creepy – and violent when he had had realised that Jade would never belong to him. But when he had finally realised this, he had gone on a rampage in order to destroy the person who had been very close to Jade at this time: Phil Mustang, Jade's little brother. One day after school, Phil had been nearly killed by the stalker if Jade wouldn't have saved him. It had pained him so much to see his sister's tormented eyes and even though he hadn't been her greatest fan at the time, he had made a point out of staying on her side, no matter how much it hurt.

Claudio was, in many ways, a huge improvement to Jade's previous suitors who had been interested in nothing but her money and her pretty face – when she had been lucky, so Phil couldn't bring himself to hate the prince that much. He was just careful because he didn't want Jade to get hurt again.

"Very well," Riza said as she took her coat. "I need to get the kids from school. I see all of you later."

* * *

Jun Li's blue eyes were narrowed as she shook her head and took the kunai from Cai. "I know that you can to better," she said while she performed the smooth and agile movement she expected from him once more. "I know that you are probably bored because we keep repeating this movement for days … but I can see that you are still not ready for something more complicate. I expect the best from you."

The little prince dropped on his knees. "You are killing me," he whispered. "Why, Jun-Jun, why?"

She chuckled as she sat down in front of him. "I am making you work so hard because I don't want you to be killed by some assassin. I heard from your friend Laila that Miss Nerissa won't be back in town for weeks and when she comes back, I want you to be as good as her."

Cai exhaled deeply as he got back up. "You are a slave driver, Jun-Jun," he complained. "But – hey, no Yao ever turned down such a challenge. Miss Nerissa is surely talented … but I will be better than her one day." He grabbed the kunai she was handing him. "Here we go!" he exclaimed.

His uncle chuckled before he got up. "Hey, Junny," he said while he wrapped one arm around her waist. "I just got to realise that you didn't spare with me for a long time…"

She raised an eyebrow. "Bring it on," she said while she took some of her favourite weapons. "But you know that you never got me down in all the years we know each other."

He laughed. "Let's make a bet," he said while he stretched his hands. "Whoever wins is allowed to wish for something. You know the rules of our fights, right?"

She nodded shortly before she inhaled deeply. "Of course."

They were used to fighting each other for fun. He could nearly predict where she would move to and she suddenly realised that her sense that allowed her to feel his chi wasn't as strong as it used to be. Trice she had to avoid him last second and the fourth time, she tripped over his leg that was suddenly on her side and fell down. She glared up at him and pouted. "So, what do you want?" she asked.

He smirked widely.


	15. 89: Night of Secrets

**Chapter 89: Night of Secrets**

* * *

The office lay in perfect darkness but the man didn't care at all as he walked into the darkness. Yes, her smell was all over the heavy furniture. The slightly sour but still smell that belonged to her and only to her … the smell that was the reason why he had always been able to find her ever since they had let him out of the prison. He found her desk and opened the unlocked top drawer where he found a pair of fingerless black gloves. She had always been the Black Lady of the town, even as a child. But then he spotted a photo on top of the desk. It showed the Black Lady, her actual toy, her twin and another woman. They looked disgustingly happy and smiled way too bright.

Suddenly, he heard footsteps on the hallway before someone walked straight into the room. He heard that it wasn't the one he wanted to see but it was also a woman. He heard her long hair hit her back as she moved through the room like it was her own. She made her way to the desk before she froze. "Who is here?" she asked with a lethal cold voice and the man in the shadows realised that his little princess had no longer nothing but idiots around her. This woman was a risk, he was sure of it. Suddenly, the lamp on the desk went on and the black-haired woman stared at him for a moment before he attacked her. The fight was hard for the stupid bitch was fighting back with all the strength she had and her long fingernails drew complicate designs in his skin. Finally, he was able to grab a heavy book and knocked the annoying slut out with it before he ran away.

* * *

Jun Yao watched his son and his most trusted ally with glee as they finally returned from their little training excursion. Jun Li looked a little bit annoyed but that was normal for her since her skill to spot the chi of another person had seen better times before. It annoyed the hell out of her since it made her weaker and she hated being weak because that made her depend on other people – something she hated. She was used to being strong and she also knew what drained her power from her – without attacking the actual strength she needed to stay alive.

"How did it go, son?" Jun Yao asked with a smirk while Cai bounced around in the living room.

"I successfully tricked her," the prince said with a wide grin. "Junny thought that I would play it nice but why should I do this as long as I want something? And we all know how things are in Xing: who doesn't pay attention gets in trouble – or married, right, my darling?" he wrapped one arm around her waist and kissed her gently. "I hope that you don't mind, father," he added.

Jun Li pouted a little bit. "You don't have to rub it in my face that I didn't concentrated enough," she said before she glared at Cai. "Little boys belong in bed now," she ordered.

"Yes, Jun-Jun," he muttered while he looked down. "But can we work out tomorrow again? I promise that I will concentrate even better than today if you show me another move…"

She sighed while she ruffled his hair. "I will think about it," she said while she stretched. "Well, I am off to bed too, gentlemen. Whoever dares to wake me up is dead, just so you know."

* * *

Jade hurried down the hallway while Claudio and Phil right behind her. The state alchemist nearly broke down the door as she tried to open it and she cursed in words her mother would have made her wash her mouth with soap as she spotted the woman on the floor. Like all Mustangs, Jade was very protective about those who were close to her. She remembered the story how her late uncle, Roy's father, had nearly broke every bone in a man's body – just to protect his sisters. Being female, Jade lacked such a physical strength to a certain point but she made up for it with her intelligence. She made her way towards her hurt friend and while she turned Bea around, she vowed that she would take revenge for this.

"Bea…" Phil whispered while he kneeled down next to his fiancée. "Wake up, darling … please…"

Jade, however, collected herself and hurried over to the phone and dialled the number of Jun Li's private phone. The Xingese warrior was not only a skilled healer but also able to track down whoever had attacked Bea. Jade took it really seriously when someone attacked her friends – and if necessary, she would punish the person without the support of her friends. She was a strong state alchemist after all and she wouldn't need the help of anyone to give the coward who knocked out Bea the beating of a lifetime. Jade hated people who attacked the ones she cared for and as she looked over her shoulder and spotted the red bruise and the blood in Bea's face, she grabbed the coat from her chair. That had been the reason why she had come back to the office in first place. "I am taking this very seriously," she said with a deep frown. She huffed. "Seriously enough to go to Elric to make him help me with this problem," she added while she closed the buttons. "Well, I'll be back soon, boys. Take care of Bea and don't hesitate to beat up whoever may come for her to finish her off."

* * *

It was night but Roy was still up and walking around in the living room. On the table were the arrays the children had designed during their lesson and it was obvious that the smart and systematic Victoria was ahead of her siblings – just like Jade had always been ahead of him and Phil when they had studied under Abigail. He wasn't worried about Victoria's fast progress because he knew that she was – after all – the daughter of Lynn who had been one of the smartest women he had ever met and Martin who had had the skill of memorising everything he saw, felt or heard.

He stood on the window when a shadow appeared in front of it. He was about to attack when he recognised his cousin in the last second and lowered his hand again and opened the window for her. "I hope you know how lucky you are," he said while he held out a hand. "Well, it's late, so what are you doing here?" he asked while he sat down.

"Bea was attacked," she said with gritted teeth while she started to pace around. "Oh, when I get my hands on the bastard who did that do her I am going to tear off his skin bit by bit … I am going to kill him slowly." She looked at her cousin over her shoulder. "You know how I can get, right?"

He nodded slowly. "Yes, your temper can be worse when Izumi's if you get really angry," he said with a smirk. "Well, I really don't want to be inconsiderate, but…"

She looked in his direction, indicating that she was listening.

Roy looked at Jade who was pacing around in the room and was more than happy that she didn't cry. He hated to see her upset and even though he knew that Jade Mustang hadn't cried in a long time and that she showed her grief in another way by now, he told himself that she was just angry. He walked over to her and grabbed her upper arm before he led her to the couch. "Jade," he said gently, "I need to ask you for a favour. I won't lie … it will be dangerous but … you are the only one who can do it."

She smirked while she nodded slightly. "Dangerous for a normal person or dangerous for me?" she asked while she took out a little notebook. "Well, I will do whatever it may be what you ask from me."

It was better for her to focus on a new mission instead of worrying. She had done what she could do best: managing a situation by taking care of everything and leaving afterwards to get more help.

"At the same time when I first came to study under Riza's father…" Roy sighed. "There was another student, an older boy. He studied under Lady Hawkeye and I hardly saw him. I just know that he had to go when he stole something from one of the girls. I never knew what … but last night, I remembered that there used to be a really old book in Lynn's room … and one day, it was gone. I ask you for this favour … because the case should interest you for two reasons. Firstly, it was stolen from your best friend and secondly, it was about your field of experience: to break codes…"

She was silent for a moment. "I'll get to read it first," she said and he knew that it was her twisted way to say that she would do the job. "Give me everything you have on that guy. I will track him down in les than four months, so I will be back in time for the end of the summer break of the parliament."

He smiled at her. "I knew that you would do it," he said, "but I want you to go with a partner – and Phil is stuck in the capital since Bea's parents are going to visit them and you know how parents are when it comes to meeting the future children-in-law." He chuckled. "By the way, did you already drag Claudio to Barley? He has to meet our lovely mother and your father…" he smirked at her blush. "Aah, it's still so much fun to annoy you, Jade!" he exclaimed. "You are crimson in your face!"

She glared at him with all her might. "So, who will be my partner?" she asked with a frown.

"Well, the mission will be most likely in the East and we don't have many people from there…"

She shook her head. "Don't tell me that I have to go on a mission with Elric," she complained. "He hates me. The first change he gets, he will leave me to die on dirt, Roy!"

"Jade," he said and grabbed her shoulders. "I know that you and Fullmetal don't like each other at all but for the sake of the mission, can you try to get along with him? The cover story Riza and I made up requests that you play his older sister. Claudio can go with you if he wants to … and we considered if we should allow Victoria to join you … because technically, the book belongs to her seeing that she is Lynn's oldest child – even if she beats Nick just by minutes. And she likes you. Furthermore, her break starts soon enough too and … well … you understand … Laila and Cai are so close that Riza thinks that we should already plan the wedding … and Nick and Elicia are close too. Vicky always feels a little bit left out … especially since the twins are too young for her to play with … and I want her to enjoy her summer break … and I don't want her to study all the time…"

His cousin rubbed her temples. "Mom would so kill me if she would know that I am taking a little girl on a mission with me," she said, "but I will do it – considering that it would be fun."

"Jade," he said seriously, "I hope that we will see each other again soon. You know how dangerous a high-skilled Water Alchemist can be … and why I can't go after him myself."

She nodded silently. "Fire and water are natural opponents," she stated calmly. "Well, I'll be on my way back to the office. I just needed to get away from everything for a moment. Honestly, after all we went through I still can't deal with a hurt comrade. It makes me feel terrible."

"At least you have enough common sense to leave before you can blow up everything – including evidence," he said. "Well, Jade, I see you in the morning for the details of your mission. Oh … and don't tell Phil any details. Riza and I know that facts, the rest should assume that you are on a vacation."

"What about Laila and Nick?" the woman asked. "Those two are always getting in trouble – and I can imagine that Olivier would assume that something is wrong too. Furthermore – everyone knows that I would rather kill myself than going on a vacation with Fullmetal."

"Jade, why can you don't act your age and go along with him?" he sighed.

She glared at him. "It is a matter of pride," she suddenly announced. "This boy asked me honestly how I cheated during the written examination! He believes that it is impossible to get the full score! And he said that if someone would have had a chance to get the full score, it would have been him! He is so arrogant and yet he claims that Phil and I are the arrogant ones!"

Her cousin looked at her before he started to chuckle. "You don't get it, right?" he asked.

She shook her head. "That stupid guy just ruins my mood by standing around!" she hissed.

"I would say that he is jealous of your accomplishment," he said. "Fullmetal is someone who always wants to be the best – and he doesn't take it kindly if someone beats him in his field. And you did it. You dared to beat him in his domain. He feels like you attacked him first, so he tries to fight back."

"And here I thought that you would never make sense, Roy -boy," she grinned. "Do you regret that your great miniskirt-plan never came true? I believe that Martin and Charles would be disappointed…"

"Well, at least Armstrong won't kill me," Roy smirked. "Are you heading back?"

"Yeah, I am going to wake up Fullmetal on my way back. He can be of some use for me," she said. "As long as he annoys me, I won't freak out and blow up the place. You know how I can get."

"And you get worse with every passing day," he grinned.

She turned to leave, again through the window before she froze and turned around. "I have to be tired since I didn't wonder about this before," she said slowly. "Tell me, Roy, why do you need a book to help you to break a code? Usually, you just dump the manuscript on my desk and I have to deal with it…"

"It's … personal," he said slowly. "I am sorry but I won't tell you, Jade."

She rolled her eyes and disappeared back into the night.

Roy sighed deeply and rubbed his temples before he raised his head and looked over to the door where Victoria had appeared. She looked like a ghost with her pale face and her scar was visible. She carefully went over to him and sat down next to him. "Was that Aunty Jade?" she asked quietly.

He nodded. "How much did you hear?" he asked while he stroked her messy hair.

"Just something about Edward's jealousy," she replied. "And something about a book…"

"She is getting back a book that belongs to you," Roy said. "The book was stolen from Lynn many years ago – back then, we hadn't the chance to get it back. Now we can do it … and I hope that you allow me to use it for one little thing before I give it back to you. It would help me greatly."

She nodded. "I have no idea what you are talking about but you can have it," she said while she rubbed the scar which was aching once more. She had been just a baby when she had gotten it and on earlier pictures, the angry red gash had been always the most impressing trait about her. She couldn't remember how she had gotten it – and she knew that Jade knew but she also knew that she would never ask the female state alchemist but she had seen the pained face of Breeze Soul whenever the scar had been visible, so it was save to assume that there was a story behind the scar in which Jade had failed to be the heroine, something she usually always achieved.

* * *

Edward looked at Jade who looked like she was about to yell at someone – but that was quite normal for someone as emotionally stressed as her. "What's up, Mustang?" he asked while he watched how Phil and Claudio took care of the injured Bea while Jun Li and her escort were searching for traces. The Xingese hadn't been happy to be called that late at night and Jun Li was still in her pyjama while she walked around in the office.

The older state alchemist shook her head. "Just a memory," she said while applied pressure on her forehead to ease to pain inside her head. "Do you know the feeling that you forgot something important?" As she straightened, her sleeves slipped down and for a moment, the angry red stripes around her wrists were visible before she hid them again. "There was something in my past and it is related to this event … I just can't figure out what exactly it was…"

Phil looked at her from the other side of the room. "Bea's injuries look a little bit familiar," he said. "I believe that I looked the same when this crazy guy attacked me for being too close with you…"

Edward watched how Jade rushed out of the room and shook his head. "For someone that emotional, it's really a wonder that she is still standing on her own feet," he muttered under his breath but was confronted with Claudio's glare. The prince walked over to him and looked down at him. "Leave Jade alone," he said. "You know nothing about the things she went through. She saw more than you … and I never saw her complain about anything. In case you forgot: she got injured in the West because you stole files and she had to follow you. And I hate to see her injured!"

* * *

"That's enough," Jade whispered before she wiped away her make-up, revealing the scar on her face. It was a deep gash which resembled the scar on Victoria's chest before the healing through Lynn's patented _Let-the-scar-disappear_-method. "Look at this, you fool," she muttered. "You took this scar instead of betraying your comrades. You can make your own decisions – and if you ever doubt yourself again, it will be the last thing you will ever do. You made it so far, you can survive!"

She remembered the feeling of the cold steel running through her skin … the feeling of fear … the fact that she had known that they would torture her until they would have the information they desired. They had caught her when she had been babysitting the twins for Lynn. Victoria had been on Jade's lap when the men had broken into Lynn's and Martin's house. They had wanted to get the insider information Jade possessed as personal state alchemist of the commander of the Western Area. She had fought back but she had been careful because of the children. When they had realised that Jade would never speak, they had hurt Victoria– effectively sending Jade over the edge. She had knocked them all out, in one single transmutation.


	16. 90: Welcome in the family

**Chapter 90: Welcome in the family**

* * *

"…Vicky?" Laila asked quietly as she entered her sister's room late at night. The last day had been hell for both of them and she wanted to speak with her younger sister who seemed sometimes so far away. Laila, however, didn't envy Victoria for her many talents. She knew that her little sister had her own problems even though it was just not her to ask for help. Laila walked over to Victoria's bed and sat down next to her. "I know that you are still awake, Vicky."

The redhead turned around to face her. "Tell me, Laila, do you think that my scar is ugly?" she asked.

"Are you crazy?" the blonde shook her gently. "The scar is splendid! Mommy and daddy have a lot of scars to but most of them were made by fire! Your scar looks way better than theirs!"

"Thanks, Lai-Lai," Victoria smiled while she sat up. "Well, why did you come over that late at night? You know that Riza won't be happy if she catches you up at that hour…"

"If she comes over, I will feign sleep," the older girl winked at her. "So, I just wanted to check on you. I mean … you were up all the time last night. I heard you walking around in your room … the same way daddy walked around in the living room. I wanted to check on you but when I came, you weren't here any longer. I believe you talked with daddy all night long, right?"

Victoria nodded. "I couldn't sleep," she admitted while she bit her lower lip. "I was too angry with Jacqueline. She successfully annoyed me to death and I just wanted to hit her … but when I break her again, I am sure that I will get in serious trouble, so I have to keep myself together."

Laila patted her shoulder. "I believe she annoys all of us to death … but she seems to hate you more than anyone else," she said. "Did she really ask you if you are doing something to keep your hair that red? Honestly, it is ridiculous that she acts that way … and should she ever bother you again, she will have to answer to me. And Jun-Jun showed me some really amazing moves today in the training you skipped. Where have you been? We waited for you until daddy called and said that you wouldn't come. Nick and I were worried and Cai called Elicia if she knows where you are."

"I am leaving the town straight after the exams," Victoria said. "Dad suggested that I should spend more time out of town. The smog here is terrible for my lungs … and since Knox fears that could develop asthma if I stay in the city." She bit her lower lip. "I travel through the East with Aunty Jade and Claudio while you will stay in town with Nick, Eli and Cai."

The blonde raised an eyebrow. "And you are sure that you will really leave?" she asked. "Is mommy okay with that? I mean … you can heal … but your hand-to-hand isn't the best." She grinned. "I have an idea: you won't study for the exam tomorrow. Instead we go to Jun-Jun for more training."

"Do you think that she will be happy if we barge in right after school?" Victoria asked.

"It's important that you learn to protect yourself," the older sister said while she grabbed the book on Victoria's nightstand. "Don't tell me that you are so obsessed with mathematics that you read this book before going to bed," she sighed while she looked at her sister. "My dear sister, you need a best friend. I hate to be so blunt but it is necessary." She sighed while she gently patted her sister's head. "And since I am such a good big sister…"

"…you don't forget that I am taller than you, right?"

"Sssh, who cares?" Laila grinned broadly. "Well, what I was about to say … it's my duty to take care of you because you are younger and vulnerable."

Victoria rolled her eyes. "You know that I am perfectly able to take care of myself?" she asked.

"Of course I know … I just sometimes wonder why exactly you always get away with everything…" Laila pouted.

"I don't know it myself … but Nick always gets away too … so maybe it's a twin-thing."

The sisters laid awake for a moment and stared at the ceiling above the bed. They were close after all even though Laila knew that Victoria and Nick had a much closer bond, being twins. She had seen how Nick had blown up on people who had annoyed Victoria and Victoria hissing at girls who got too close to her little brother. Nick hated people who came to close to her. Laila sometimes envied Victoria for being able to read the boy like an open book. She always knew what he felt and that made her always the first to comfort him when everything came crashing down around him.

They heard the phone ringing and exchanged a frown through the darkness. It was rare that people called the chancellor late at night. Usually they waited until the daybreak or stopped by personally.

"Hey, girls?" Nick closed the door behind him. "Are you still awake?"

Victoria sat up again. "You knew it even before you came in," she muttered. "Well, do you know what's going on? We just heard the phone ringing…"

"It rung once before … but that was just Jun-Jun, complaining about Cai's behaviour and asking for an advice of mom," their brother replied. "But this time it seemed to be Uncle Ben … and he sounded pretty excited…" He looked at the girls. "Do you think what I think?"

Laila looked at Victoria who had her eyes closed while her lips vibrated. "I think so too," she said.

"It would – after all – make sense," Victoria agreed with her siblings. "Honestly, I am not joking."

"Leave it to Vicky to recalculate everything in seconds," Laila sighed. "Well, what now?"

"There are two options," Nick said. "Receive further conformation by asking our parents or waiting until the morning before we decide what we will do."

The twins would just pass their eighth birthday before the start of their next year of school while Laila was a flower of the early spring, half a year older than her siblings. She was, however, shorter than both of them, especially compared to Victoria who was the tallest out of them. The girl beat her twin by one centimetre – and she was very proud of this centimetre.

* * *

Riza smiled as she looked at her husband who had just finished the call. "The only real question right now is if we should wake up the kids," she said. "Helena will wake up in one minute anyway and when she demands our attention, she will wake up Rachel…"

"One day, Lena will be as much of a perfectionist as you," Roy sighed while he rubbed his forehead. "I mean, we always know when she will wake up at night."

She smirked. "It's a Hawkeye-thing," she said with a smirk. "You have to know that we have many _mysterious_ skills – and awaking every day at the same time is one of them."

"I have to admit, this is really useful," he said. "But my family has some special abilities too! My Gran and my aunt created a special method to ease pain temporarily. I am, however, too impatient for this so I have to rely on Jade who is patient enough to study this stuff every day."

"You should be ashamed that your younger cousin works harder than you," his wife scolded with a wink before she left the room to check on the toddlers. "Oh, and go and wake up the kids, will you?"

"I am on my way," he said before he hurried upstairs. He first opened the door to Nick's room because his son was usually the only one who could wake up his sisters without getting seriously hurt. But the bed was empty and Roy sighed. It was nothing new that the children would meet up in Laila's room before their bedtime and fall asleep there. He went over to his oldest daughter's bedroom but it was as empty as the previous one. Finally, he opened the door of Victoria's room and found the three kids. They seemed to be asleep and the girls surrounded Nick who smiled innocently in his sleep.

Roy crossed the room while he nearly tripped over a book on the floor and sat down on the chair next to the bed. "Kids," he said gently. "It would be good if you would wake up. You just got a new cousin…"

He remembered how Olivier had gone into labour during their last meeting before the break of the parliament and how Bendix had brought her to the hospital. Jade had skipped the meeting to be in the hospital with her brother and her boyfriend who hadn't left Bea's bedside since the attack.

Victoria snapped into consciousness and tilted her head. "Is the baby there?" she asked excited.

"It is," Roy replied. "We are going to the hospital … and if you want to, you can come with us."

* * *

The hospital room was nearly empty when the Mustang-Hawkeye-family appeared. Charlotte and Leroy weren't the youngest anymore and had left to get the terrible yet strong coffee of the hospital. Alex had been thrown out by Olivier three seconds after his arrival and sat sulking in front of the door – guarding the HEIR OF THE WONDERFUL ARMSTRONG-FAMILY! – and was comforted by his little sister, Catherine. Jade had stopped by for a moment before she had returned to her hurt sister-in-law.

"Mustang," Olivier growled while she held her daughter. "One wrong move and you can keep Alex a little bit of company, am I understood? I am not in the mood for your childish behaviour."

"Princess…" Bendix smiled and patted her shoulder before he took their firstborn son. The little boy was called Lars after one of their favourite characters from **An Eternal Love**. He had very pale blond hair – a typical Armstrong-trademark how Alex had claimed before Charlotte had reminded him of the infamous Llewellyn-blond. His eyes, however, were exactly like Olivier's … just much warmer. All in all, the baby was utterly adorable and every female being who had seen him so far had gushed about this adorableness for minutes afterwards.

"He is so sweet!" Victoria exclaimed while she clapped her hands. She stood close to Bendix on her toes and couldn't help but notice that the little boy was – for the lack of a better word – _perfect_.

Olivier chuckled dryly. "I hate to quote Alex but … _'The art of having perfect children has been passed down in the Armstrong-family for CENTURIES!'_" she said with a wink. "But I have to admit that the Llewellyn-traits are really perfect to accentuate the adorableness of Lars. Doesn't he look extremely cute?"

Her glare told everyone that she would rip of the head of the fool who would disagree.

"Extremely cute, yes," Roy hastily said while he patted Helena's hair. He and his firstborn were close and he was usually the only one who could calm her down when she was crying about the pain her teeth caused her. She had somehow inherited her late aunt's fiery temper and Roy had also been the only one to calm Lynn down when Martin had sent her over the edge. Maes' late cousin had been courting her desperately and one day he had told her 'The next girl I will tell "I love you" will be our _daughter'_ and she had punched him so hard that she had knocked him out. Roy had more experience than any other man when it came to dealing with annoyed women. His aunts, Izumi, Abigail, Agnes (the terrible person who was responsible for Alec and Londres who were unfortunately invited to Phil's wedding) and Chris, were hardly patient women and neither were Jade, Laila or Victoria.

"I thought so," Olivier said smugly before she nodded into Victoria's direction. "You can hold him for a moment," she smiled before she noticed Laila's and Nick's pouts. "The tallest one starts but afterwards you can hold him too, I promise," she hastily added.

The only boy sighed deeply before he glared at his sister. "One day I will figure out how you were able to grow so fast and I will do everything to become taller than you!" he promised darkly.

She smiled teasingly at him before she carefully took Lars from his father. A bright smile appeared on her face. Victoria was always happy when she got to hold a baby for the first time. "Hey there, Lars," she said softly while she carefully brushed back a strand of his golden hair that covered one of his eyes. "You are really a cute little boy but make sure that you grow a little bit, alright? Make your mommy happy, am I understood?"

"Now it's my turn!" Nick announced and appeared on her side. "Hello, Lars, bro, one day, when you are a grownup, we can go out together and get you a decent girlfriend, someone your mom will approve of. I, however, already promised Elicia that I will marry her one day, so you can't have her. She would be too old for you anyway, so I hope that you don't mind that I will be angry with you when you make a move on my girl later on…"

Roy chuckled before he collected himself. "Does Hughes know that you intend to marry his daughter one day, Nick?" he asked while he ruffled the boy's hair gently. "You know how he gets with her…"

"Nah, we decided that we would run away if necessary," his son announced proudly.

"Your son really takes after you, Roy," Phil said from the door. "I can remember how you were when you first dated Riza. You were, of course, much older than Nick … but I can remember how you told Iz that you and Riza would elope if her father wouldn't approve of your relationship."

"See, I am having a great influence on Nick," Roy said proudly while Laila _finally_ got to hold Lars.

"Great influence … honestly?" his cousin chuckled. "We are lucky when Nick doesn't become a pyromaniac like you, Roy. You know that Jade still believes that you consider seeing a psychiatrist about these tendencies of yours. I am sure that Mrs Robinson could help you."

"What are you doing here?" Bendix interrupted. "Shouldn't you be on your fiancée's side, holding her hand like I did it with Olivier during the birth?"

His wife bit her lip as she looked up to him. "Does it still hurt?" she asked worried, remembering that she nearly crushed it.

He shook his head before he gently kissed her. "I love you, Liv," he said seriously – but on the other hand, he was always serious when it came to his feelings for her. He was an honest man after all.

Riza chuckled lowly before she took her, well, cousin into her arms and rocked him gently back and forth. Bendix was her mother's brother after all and even though it was strange to consider a baby which was younger than any of her children as a cousin, she could have to do it. "You are really a sweet boy, Lars," she stated, "but don't take too much after your daddy, will you? One Bendix is fine, two would be our downfall." She winked at her uncle – how much she hated to call him that even though it was technically correct. "And make your mommy proud when you are older, Lars. She needs someone she can brag with all day long when your cousin-in-law and his best friend brag with their kids."

Olivier laughed softly as she took her son again and looked at Phil. "Do you know if your sister accepted of being godmother?" she asked seriously.

Victoria clapped her hands in glee. "So, Lars and I will have the same godmother?" she asked.

"Since she accepted, yeah," Phil said with a shrug. "I believe she started to collect godchildren."

"You are such a meanie!" the little girl announced while her siblings – even Helena and Rachel – nodded. The blond twins had probably no clue what their sister was talking about this time but they were used to agreeing with their older siblings every single time they needed the support.


	17. 91: Flowers and Hell

**Chapter 91: Flowers and Hell**

* * *

Winry carefully put down the tray with the apple pie and hoped that she hadn't scared Nerissa who looked out of the window with a slight frown on her usually so calm face. "What are you thinking about, Miss Hawkeye?" the younger blonde asked while she grabbed her coffee mug.

"You have beautiful flowers here," she said while she sighed deeply. "I would love to paint some of them … but just if you allow me to. I don't want to be a bother."

"Ed told me that you are good at painting," Winry said, glad for the topic. "Is that helpful while being an alchemist?"

"Yeah, it is," Nerissa chuckled while she looked at the pie. "I used to paint flowers for my youngest sister when we were children," she added while a hint of sadness appeared in her eyes.

"You lost all of your sisters, right?" the mechanic asked compassionate. "That's so sad."

The alchemist nodded. "The funny thing about this is," she muttered, "that I never believed that one of them would die that easily … especially not Serena … I expected more from her…" She shook her head while she opened the locket she always wore before she showed the picture in the inside to Winry. It showed Nerissa at five years with the three year old Serena. The sisters looked very similar. Next to the picture where words graved into the gold: _I am still painting flowers for you._ Nerissa sighed. "Rena was the most perfect out of us, not like Kay. Kay was … well … the homecoming queen of our small town … the star of every play at school … _disgustingly_ perfect. I won't deny that she was lovely because that would be useless. My twin had the smoothest skin and the most beautiful red hair a girl can have. Wherever she walked, boys were on the floor to her feet. I wasn't jealous – at least that's what I try to tell myself … and I always told myself that Kay was as ugly inside as she was perfect on the outside."

"But you still loved her," Winry stated.

Nerissa nodded. "It's impossible to hate Kay," she replied. "I know from Lynn that she was jealous. They were good friends but that couldn't keep Silver from hating Kay. I bet that she always feared that Martin would leave her for Kay…"

"It has to be very hard to be the little sister of such a seemingly perfect person…"

"You are right," the older woman nodded. "Kay was always the first in line for everything. While she was the prom queen – and she never failed to become this –Lynn and Serena were always just in the marching band. Serena was a gifted musician by the way and Kay … well … her only artistic talent consisted of creating things with alchemy." She sighed. "I always felt sorry for Serena, not so much came around somehow. But Serena … she was so sweet, so kind … she deserved so much more than Kay … but while Kay was always the best dressed girl, Serena was just the girl next door." She huffed in annoyance. "But later on, Serena became senior class president – and president of everything else what needed a president. Unlike Kay, she was never too harsh or too demanding." She shrugged. "I always liked her way more than Kay."

She closed her eyes for a moment, remembering all the innocent moments of her childhood when she had been the one Serena had run to when the others had picked on been always with Kay and Riza, so Serena had come to Nerissa with every little problem she had had. Maybe that had been one of the many reasons why Nerissa had been so annoyed with Kay's always sweet behaviour.

Edward slammed the door close as he returned from his little trip to his parents' grave and crossed his arms before he sighed deeply. "I really don't want to," he muttered once more. "I get along with Vicky and Claudio … I just can't stand Mustang. She is terribly annoying … and an unskilled fighter too!"

Nerissa chuckled softly as she brushed back a strand of her shaggy hair. "You know, Elric, she isn't that bad," she stated. "When I was in Central the last time around to visit Mrs Robinson and hear all the stories about the heir of the Armstrong-Llewellyn-clan, I also checked the state alchemist ranking. Jade Mustang was always considered as one of the most powerful human weapons … and I know that you will hate to hear this but whoever wrote that ranking considered her as stronger than you."

The teenager glared at her. "That's just because she cheated somehow during the written exam," he said confidently. "Honestly, she may be smart and sly but there is no way in hell that she could stay alive or on her feet for more than eight seconds in a serious fight against a real state alchemist!"

Winry rolled her sapphire eyes. "I hate to break the facts to you but when I repair Philippe's hand, he sometimes talks about his sister," she said amused. "And like you, Jade once used her yearly test if her skill is still up to the requirements a state alchemist has to fulfil for a serious fight. And she fought against Major Armstrong … she defeated him in less than three minutes through knock-out."

Edward's jaw dropped. "She knocked him out?" he asked, completely shocked. "How?"

Nerissa rolled her eyes once more. "Isn't it logic?" she asked. "Air Alchemy allows the user to drain oxygen and any other gases from someone. And I shudder to think of the things an expert could do."

"…is Ed bitching against Miss Mustang again?" Alphonse asked with a sigh as he entered.

"I am merely stating the facts!" his brother said. "There is no way in hell that she could to something like that. Knocking out Armstrong … a real master could do it, maybe. But she … she is just some self-obsessed party girl!"

Mei stared at him for a moment before she started to chuckle like he had just told the best joke of a century. "Um, Edward," she said carefully, "I really don't want to ruining the image you have of her … but she is a master of Air Alchemy … and it makes sense since her parents are both known masters of it too. Did you never hear of Madame Abigail Mustang-Tempest and her husband, Alain Tempest?"

Nerissa raised an eyebrow at the Xingese princess. "I heard of them, of course," she said with a little huff, "but I wasn't aware that their fame reaches to Xing, Miss Mei…"

Alphonse chuckled. "Don't worry, Nessa," he said friendly. "Mei and I know about them because we listen when the chancellor speaks about his family … and I guess that Win knows too because she listens to Phil when they hold a conversation during the check-ups…"

The young blonde nodded before she took a letter out of her apron. "By the way, we are all invited to the wedding of Philippe and Beatrice," she said while she wondered how long it had been since the groom had told her more stories about his lovely fiancée than she cared to remember. "And isn't it great that Beatrice finally recovered? I can understand Jade's anger. If I was in her place, I would throw some wrenches at the bastard who dared to attack Beatrice!"

* * *

Jade's face showed her most beautiful frown as they left the train station. She was worried for more than one reason. Firstly: she would do an important mission without her little brother who was still the best partner she had ever had. Secondly: she had changed her hair colour from black to blond in order to disguise herself and she found that her eyes were even more prominent this way. Thirdly: she had to do an important mission with Fullmetal aka _The One who would let her die in the dust as soon as he got the chance_. She would be, however, civil and try to get along with him since it was hardly his fault that he had fallen victim to the green-eyed monster. And fourthly: Victoria wasn't happy that she had had to leave her books at home because it was crucial that no one was to be recognised.

"So … here does he live?" Victoria asked as she saw the yellow palace of a certain wrench-throwing automail-empress. "I would have imagined it a little bit … bigger to tell the truth … he is a state alchemist after all … and mommy could buy a bigger house."

The little girl looked strange with her blond hair but she had to pretend that she was Jade's daughter.

"It's bigger than it looks like," Jade said while she took Claudio's hand. "Let's go and get him."

"Why do you have to take him with you when you don't want to?" the girl asked. "Can't you, I don't know, _forget_ to get him? No one would know…"

Her _mother_ sighed deeply. "You have no idea how much I would love to do this," she said, "but if the least logical case should happen and we mess it up, Roy would throw a fit and I just got rid of the headache I had ever since Bea was attacked. Hey, if we are lucky, we can get this guy too!"

She held a huge grudge against the unknown person who had nearly killed off Phil's girlfriend.

* * *

She had been out for a walk through the small town she had lived in for years. Every once and again, she had looked to her left side where she still expected her best friend from happier days to walk, right next to her, unfaltering and always there when she needed him. When they had been still united, she had always felt at ease as long as he had been there. He had had radiated the same feeling as home and so she missed him quite a lot after being away for such a long time.

A deep sigh escaped her lips as she took of her coat and sat down at the table in the living room. Their last meeting hadn't gone all that good and so she had left her favourite scarf at his flat of that time. She wondered whether he had thrown it away or if he had kept it – as a reminder of their friendship which had meant a lot to both of them. Well, he had been the one to buy her this scarf in first place and so it was likely had he had kept it.

She connected her fingertips as she stared at the picture she had stolen from her sister's old flat. He looked so much like she had always wanted to remember him for the rest of their lives. His calm and mature disposition and her wide-eyed, innocent gaze had fooled many along the years because they had been one of the most efficient teams in the whole country, nearly besting even their sisters. She remembered them singing along to the songs in the radio. She remembered their walks in the park as the leaves fell from the trees in autumn.

Bitterness crept into her heart once more because those days were long gone and the magical, perfect moments would never return. Her fate had become theirs by separating them forever. She might have survived but she wasn't alive anymore because she had never felt more alive and strong than back in the good old days when they had been still a team, an _amazing_ team.

This season had been their season, a long time ago, and as she closed her eyes, she was there again, laughing in the old streets of WestCity, dancing in more or less shady clubs without any regrets. Yes, they had never regretted anything because with their profession, death had always been right behind them. She remembered how his hair had gleamed in the red shine of the fire on Midwinter when they had celebrated together, stuck on duty. She remembered the wind in her hair the first and last time she had seen the ocean because in her mind, she was there again … and like most things connected to her old life, she remembered it just all too well.

Her fingertips trailed the photo album, another item she had stolen from her late sister and once more, she came to realise that she didn't regret this theft even though other people – namely her sister's children and other, living relatives deserved it probably more than she did.

He had been such a strange guy when they had first met, hardly more than a boy but with the experience and the eyes of a man many times his age. And even though she knew that he was probably no longer this person because she had killed him just like she had killed herself and even though there was absolutely nothing she could do now, she refused to forget about him even though forgetting might be a first step into the direction of moving on completely – something she should have done a very long time ago … but whenever she tried, she wondered why and stopped.

* * *

Edward groaned as he saw the group in front of his door. "It's time, I guess?" he sighed.

"Listen, I am as happy about this as you are," Jade said, "but we have no other choice. So do me a favour and take it like a true man or any alchemist would take it. You signed up for the military and now since you work for the Ministry of Science, you have still to deal with the orders of the chancellor."

Nerissa appeared behind him and smiled politely. "Oh, all in blond?" she asked friendly.

"It seems so," Edward muttered before he froze and looked at her while a wide smile appeared on his face. "Say, Nessa, didn't you say that you got bored in Resembool and that you need more action? Hey, Jade, when you can bring Claudio, I can surely bring Nerissa, right? And a skilled alchemist can be useful … especially since we have to protect Victoria…"

Jade raised an eyebrow. "I am rather surprised that you suggest Nerissa instead of your brother," she said slowly.

"Alphonse is too busy with helping Winry to prepare the wedding to which – by the way – you are _not_ invited to," he said smugly. "How does that feel, little party girl?"

"Edward!" his fiancée yelled while she raised her wrench and hit him hard before she smiled friendly at the guests. "What he _wanted_ to say, Miss Jade, is that we will be really happy to welcome you and your brother along with everyone else from Central to our wedding," she said. "Oh, and can you tell your brother that we feel honoured to be invited to his wedding?"

Jade smirked mischievously at her. "I'll make sure that everyone gets the invitation," she said with a serious nod. "And I really hate that we can't stay for a moment. We have a train to catch because my parents wanted us to attend one of their little diners."

"That sounds funny," Claudio said, "and it's definitely funnier than any diner in the palace."

* * *

Edward glared at Claudio as they sat in the train. Jade, Victoria and Nerissa were asleep and the young alchemist felt that it was time to ask some very embarrassing questions. "Why don't you ask Miss Annoyance to marry you?" he asked. "Are you afraid that there would be a scandal at home? Are you just using her for your politics?"

Claudio glared back at him. "Firstly: I would never use Jade for anything," he said seriously. "I love her far too much to do something like that to her. Secondly: if I would ask her know when everyone else is getting married too, she could assume that I am just asking because everyone else who happens to be man enough to marry asks too. And thirdly: my father wholeheartedly approves of my relationship with her … and in fact, he pesters me to marry her too because he really likes her."

"So … does that mean that you will ask her someday?" Edward inquired.

"For someone who claims that he hates her you are strangely interested in seeing her married…"

"It's not because of her," the blonde defended himself. "It's just … no matter how much I dislike him, I owe Mustang a lot and I believe that his reputation could suffer if his cousin would get a child without being married. And since I did a lot to see Mustang where he is today, it would be sad."

Claudio bit his lower lip. "I believe that an unwanted pregnancy is the least of Jade's possible problems," he said quietly while he caressed her stomach. "She got shoot multiple times … and the bullets always hit her stomach. The doctors aren't sure if … if it is possible for her to have children one day. I believe that you didn't read her file properly, Elric."

"So you don't marry her because you can't have an heir with her, yes?"

"You get annoying, boy," the prince huffed, "and no, that's not the reason. I knew about this before we even started to go out because I can read and I can draw conclusions … and one of it was that such a terrible injury will cause problems for her. And furthermore, if it comes down to it, we could always adopt an heir. Look at your chancellor, Elric: his oldest daughter is adopted and even though they have biological children, Laila would always get the biggest part in case of an untimely death."

"You are really a calm and collected person, you know? So … you really try to ignore the fact that it seems like everyone is getting married right now … why don't you just ask her to marry you? Maybe she is waiting!"

Claudio chuckled. "She isn't," he said. "Jade isn't one of the women who would do everything for my ring on her finger – that's why I love her so much. She is no brainwashed fan who loves my title. No, she loves me for me and she loves me the most when I am myself. I believe that she knows that there will be a ring for her, someday soon, but she doesn't get impatient or tries to blackmail or bribe me."

"You are so cold! Next to you, an icicle would radiate warmth!"

"Jade likes that I am so analysing," Claudio said with a smirk. "And honestly, I am so happy that I found a smart and beautiful woman like her! We are really happy together!" he took a little black velvet box out of his jacket and opened it. "Does this answer your question, Elric?" he grinned.

"This ring…" Edward started at it with huge eyes. "I am no girl, so don't expect me to gush about it but … it looks like it was really, really expensive…"

The prince grinned. "It was very expensive for my great-grandfather," he said. "The ring is in my family for generations and one day soon, it will be sparkling on Jade's beautiful finger. Take a good look at it: the huge stone is an emerald and the smaller stones are rubies." He carefully watched Jade's movements in her sleep and took the ring back just in time to smile when she woke up. "Slept well, darling?" he asked lovingly while he pulled her against his chest to hold her for a moment.

Edward rolled his eyes. What had looked like a normal mission in the first moment would be hell with the love-struck prince, the equally annoying female state alchemist, the is-she-crazy-or-is-she-not blond water alchemist and the little, usually red-haired genius. Edward felt in this moment like he had just bought a one-way ticket to hell.


	18. 92: Tempest

**Chapter 92: Tempest**

* * *

"…being the heir of an extremely rich family has surely advantages," Nerissa muttered into Jade's general direction as they left the train station of Barley where a chauffeur awaited them. "Or is it just that your parents wanted to make sure that you don't run away from them, _Miss Emerald_?"

The state alchemist rolled her eyes. "Running away from my mother would be pretty stupid – she is pretty fast and not above using violence," she said with a light smile as she shook the chauffeur's hand. "Long time no see, Julius," she said with a grin.

"And I still recognised you, Miss Jade," the man said with a bow. "You look fresh like a summer breeze."

She chuckled softly before she tilted her head. "Did mama cook herself?" she asked.

"Of course, Miss," the chauffeur said. "The first time in four years that you come home and you _really_ think that your mother would leave the cooking to Hattie or the other servants? She didn't change her way to act when it comes to you and your brother?"

"You haven't been here in four years?" Edward asked with a frown. "But that's your, well, family."

She glared at him. "As much as I love Barley, I don't like all the memories I have from this place," she said while she looked at the peaceful little town before she started to grin. "That's my old school," she grinned. "Maybe I'll go over tomorrow and shock some of the teachers. They always said that I would never make something respectable out of myself."

"Aren't teachers nice people?" Nerissa asked while she crossed her arms once more. "But I can't believe that you tricked us into believing that you are the most harmless state alchemist the military had when it still had state alchemists. You just said that you were a code breaker … but in the train, I read some of Lynn's old mission reports – and she always made a point out of remembering everyone that you are quite capable, Mustang. So, why the modesty?"

The usually dark-haired woman snorted. "Modesty is hardly a word to describe a member of my huge family," she stated. "And my skill is not that impressive when compared to my mama. She is way faster and also much more beautiful than I could ever be."

* * *

Madame Abigail Mustang was an intimidating woman. Even taller than her daughter or her younger sister and also far more muscular and elegant than any other woman of her age she possessed the aura of a true queen. Her long black hair reached to her waist and was bound to a low ponytail. She used a hairclip in the shape of a butterfly and that was a strange contrast to her strong appearance. Her eyes were black without any hint of another colour while her dress was red as blood.

Jade exhaled slowly as they entered the living room. "Mama," she said with a bright smile. "You look great … but I believe that your ankle is acting up a little bit."

Her mother nodded in approval. "Well done, daughter," she said with a smile. "Ten seconds and you already figured out that I hurt my ankle during my training. You made progress but that was to be expected, Jadelina. I am proud of you." The woman crossed the room and hugged her daughter. "It took you quite some years to come back and now you return for a mission. Tss, that's too bad."

Jade blushed considerably. "I am happy to see that you feel good, mama," she said while she looked around with a little frown on her face. "Where's daddy? I thought he would be here too…"

"Alain is upstairs in the study with our actual student who isn't a disappointment like everyone else we tried to train since you and your brother finished your training," her mother said. "Julius brought the bags in the guest rooms, Jade. You will be sleeping in the same room as your boyfriend while Victoria will sleep in your old room." The master of Air Alchemy smiled down at the girl. "I heard from Jade that you are a fast learner, Victoria," she said friendly.

"Thank you, Madame Mustang," the usually red-haired girl whispered. "Thank you _so_ much."

Abigail slowly raised her left eyebrow before she looked at her daughter. "She is unusually polite for her age," she said, "and as far as I can remember Lynn and Martin, they were more … far more … how shall I say it … _outgoing_…"

"We all wonder about the same thing," Nerissa muttered quietly while she once more crossed her arms. Edward was used to this by now because that seemed to be her way to remind herself of her – at the moment – peaceful surroundings.

Jade, however, just clapped her hands. "I am going to check on daddy, guys," she said before she ran up the stairs, leaving her mother behind once more.

"That's my little girl," Abigail said proudly while she led her guests over to the couches. "Take place, I am sure that Hattie will bring over the wine and the apple juice for Victoria," she said.

* * *

Owen Johnson, student of Abigail Mustang and Alain Tempest, was repeating equations as the door was slammed open and a flash of gold and black and green flew towards his teacher.

"Daddy!" the young woman squealed as she hugged Owen's teacher tightly. "Here you are!"

"It's not like you gave me the chance to run for cover, darling," he said gently and kissed her forehead. "But I have to say, you don't make a good blonde, sorry."

She pouted while she wrapped her arms around his neck. "If you weren't my dad and much stronger than I, I would so beat you up for that comment," she said. "But you are my dad and stronger than I, so I will let it out on Phil the next time we spar."

Alain ruffled his firstborn's silky hair. "You still beat him every time he spars with you, right? That's my little girl," he said fondly. "Well, Jade, how is your job? If you don't want any longer, just tell us and you will get a nice desk in the enterprise, don't forget that, will you?"

"Of course, daddy," she said and jumped back to her feet. "Say, are you up for a little bit of sparring after diner? We haven't done anything since I left for the military and I have some new arrays I wanted to show you, daddy." She grabbed behind her, reaching for the bowl with the oranges and peeled one of them while she took one of her many notebooks from her handbag and opened it. "What do you think?" she asked, a little bit more excited than she previously had planned to sound.

"First of all: your mother won't be happy if I would tell her that you ate an orange before diner," her father replied while he took a pencil, "and secondly I believe that this array deserves a little bit more improvement. It is already pretty good, don't worry, and far better than anything your brother could ever create since he is too lazy to dedicate so much time to a single research project but if you add one more line – like this – you would make it far more powerful." He looked up while he searched for his glasses. "I am proud of you, Jade."

She beamed at him. She knew that she had always been his favourite and even though she had never rubbed it into her brother's face – because that would have been plain mean – she still took a certain satisfaction out of it. And she knew that he wouldn't tell her mother that she had eaten an orange because if he did, she would tell Abigail of the countless times when he had done the same – because father and daughter shared their addiction towards the fruit.

Owen looked in panic from his teacher to his teacher's daughter who was really pretty in his twelve year old eyes. "Um, Master Tempest?" he asked while he stopped reading for a second.

"Tss, you and mama are still that old-fashioned?" the daughter asked with a frown while she held out her hand. "Hi, I am Jade and you have to be Owen – who is the first student who got to stay for longer than just one month. It's nice to meet you."

"Likewise, Miss Tempest," Owen muttered while he tried to avoid her piercing eyes. They were scary. It seemed like she knew what he was thinking.

"Nah, don't call me that," she smiled. "Jade is absolutely alright with me but I also react to Mustang, Tempest, Soul, Stormy and at least twenty more stupid nicknames."

Her father chuckled. "You honestly still react to Stormy?" he asked. "That's what we called you when you were a little baby – and you were very cute."

There was a soft knock on the door before Edward entered. "Madame Mustang, um, sent me to tell you that diner is ready. She also said that she would punch you into the next century when you don't hurry up a little bit," he muttered while he looked down.

"Ah…" Alain Tempest turned around to face him while he still hugged his daughter. "So, Roy told me that you are giving my little girl a hard time and I just want you to know that you will have to answer to me if you keep that up. And you can ask your Teacher when you don't believe me but I am not always that nice. I believe that Izumi has still some bruises from the last time we sparred." He got up and carefully put his daughter back on her feet. "And I warn you: back in the West, Stormy and her friend Lynn were also responsible for the interrogations and when the culprits didn't cooperate, they tortured them a little bit." He smirked. "I have four words for you: **_sparkly pink nail polish_**."

"I want you to know that it was way more effective than any pain we could cause," his daughter pouted. "And by the way, daddy, mama will get really angry if we don't hurry up a little bit."

* * *

After the delicious diner, Jade and her father got up and went for a 'stroll'. Abigail sighed deeply before she looked at her student. "Owen, could you please get me some band-aid and iodine?"

"For what?" Edward asked as he looked up. "They are just going for a walk and that cannot cause serious injuries."

The Master of Air Alchemy sighed while she watched her pupil's back. "In this case it will cause some serious injuries," she said. "When my husband and my daughter go for a walk, it means that they are going to use the training field on the western border of our estates." She sighed. "I told them to stop but they can't. They are too proud and too stubborn – just like me and Phil."

Edward frowned. "One moment, you are not worried that your husband and your daughter are about to fight each other in a serious match about honour and Truth-knows-what-else and you also say that you and your son are doing the same thing on a regular basis? That practically _screams_ child abuse!"

Abigail raised one eyebrow. "And I assume that your training with my sister Izumi was all easy and all sunshine and butterflies?" she smirked. "You know, Iz and I used to spar with each other since she was old enough to develop anger issues. She needed something to take it out on and I needed a good and serious sparring partner. She was five when she first attacked me; I was ten when I fought back. True, at the beginning, when our brother was still alive, we often fought both against him…" She smiled at the memory for a second. "The point is that Izumi and I both believe in seriousness when it comes to training. And look at my success: I trained two state alchemists and I also beat the basics into Roy's skull. And believe me – the latter was quite a challenge."

Victoria raised her head from her equations. "Aunty Abigail?" she asked sweetly. "Can I go and watch Aunty Jade and Uncle Alain? Maybe I can learn something from them…"

Claudio chuckled softly while he looked at Edward. "Maybe you should go with Vicky," he said. "It would probably show you that Jade isn't as weak as you seem to think."

Abigail laughed out loud. "Jade is stubborn as hell," she said. "She doesn't have the technique she should have by now but she is someone who keeps getting up when she falls down. That's the reason why she is so hard to beat. I sparred with her once during her training and she kept getting up, even when her knees were bleeding. I love that stubbornness of hers."

"Roy is also very stubborn!" Victoria giggled.

* * *

Jade's arrays on her fingerless gloves glowed as she looked back at her father. "I am ready," she said while she looked for the weak point in his defence. Usually, they would decide between alchemy and martial arts but since they haven't sparred in such a long time, they would use both.

"That's good because I would hate to hurt my daughter," Alain replied while he moved forwards. He was a high-skilled alchemist who would have passed the state alchemist examinations at any point of his life but like his wife he had never had any interest in such a career. But he had no problem with his children' decision to join the army. He had, however, hated the empty look in Jade's face when she had seen a real battlefield for the first time because no matter what people said, the academy wasn't enough to prepare the soldiers.

They both Air Alchemists fought with every single move and every single array they knew but in the end, when they had used all their energy, they both laid down on the floor and breathed deeply.

"That was a good fight, daddy," Jade said while she inhaled deeply. "You nearly got me twice."

He chuckled breathlessly. "You certainly improved over the years," he said. "Phil still stands no chance, Stormy. I am really proud of my little girl."

She smiled smugly while she sat up again. "It's great to be back," she said while she rubbed her sore shoulder, "but did you have to use so much force in your punch, daddy?" she complained.

"What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. Don't forget our family motto, Jade," he replied while he sat up too. "Well, let's go back, yes? I need some iodine for that scratch on my eyebrow."

"It looks _very manly_, daddy," she grinned while she jumped back on her feet and held out her hand to him. "Mama will _love_ this one."

* * *

Edward who watched them along with Victoria from a safe distance gritted his teeth as he watched the playful exchange between the both. Of course, Miss Annoyance hadn't only a prefect score in the state alchemist examination and everything else anyone could want, no, she had also a very close and caring relationship with her father. He had seen it. Alain Tempest would rather kill himself before he would leave his wife and his children – and Miss Annoyance herself would fight everyone who attacked her father off before serious harm could be done.

"Well," Nerissa's calm and collected voice said somewhere behind them, "that reminds me of Rena and my dad, all those years ago." Her soft smile seemed to be glued to her face like usually when she spoke of her youngest sister for whom she had cared deeply for. "But who is that dark person?" she asked.

Edward looked into the same direction she looked and his eyes widened as he saw the glow of a transmutation and the dangerous gleam of a blade made of ice. "That's probably our target," he said.

Nerissa cursed under her breath before she collected herself once more. "Alright, Vicky, prove that you are the fastest runner in Amestris and get this Owen-boy and Madame Mustang," she ordered while Jade collapsed and how Alain went down too. "The two are out of energy. Elric, you are with me."

The blond alchemist ran behind her while he tried to catch up. "Hey, how do you think he found us?" he asked while he jumped over a fallen tree. "And that's about this timing? I hate to admit it but usually Miss Annoyance would have been able to fight him off on her own…"

"Jade and her father sparred seriously, that means that they have hardly energy left," Nerissa said. She wasn't even out of breath, years of training finally showed some sense. "And they are lucky. If they had used energy alchemy, it would have been even worse. And for how he found us … I believe that there could be a connection between the one who stole Lynn's book and the one who attacked Bea." She stopped for a moment. "I never met my mother's student," she said quietly, "but if she deemed him as worthy enough, he is probably far more insane than I could ever be." Her sapphire eyes seemed like two frozen mirrors as she took out a fountain pen and quickly drew her arrays on her hands. "That means, however, that this person is probably really strong … that means that I will take him alone … and should I fail, he belongs to you."

Edward gasped. It was new that Nerissa even considered the option that she could fail. "Much luck," he said. "The way you describe it, you will probably need it."

"That sounds about right," she said before she ran straight into the darkness of a forest.

* * *

Victoria flew through the forest, heading back to the mansion while the sound of her feet reminded of a drumbeat, giving her a more speed and driving her through the darkness, closer and closer to the house. She smirked. Nick had said that she was wasting her time with all the running she did but she didn't agree with him there.

Right now, she was proving that it had sense.

* * *

"NERISSA, watch out!" Edward yelled.

Edward's scream was, however, ignored by Nerissa. She heard it but she didn't care. She stood strong, holding up her hand against the fool who had attacked her. The most ironic thing was that her sister's technique had been able to block on of her mother's techniques. Kay and Reine had both searched for arrays which could been used in hand-to-hand combat and Kay's idea of transferring energy directly onto the palm to force back the enemy had been obviously successful. Nerissa exhaled while she directed her second hand towards the ground. The array on her hand was connected to the one on her feet, allowing her to transmute the water in the earth into creating an ice blade. Nerissa had mastered Water Alchemy at the age of eighteen after years of hard practice and Energy Alchemy when she had been even younger. Nerissa was an alchemy prodigy and was also everything but a bad fighter.

"How?" the man asked, meaning the blade she seemed to have produced out of thin air.

"My mother wasn't a bad alchemist," she said while she swung the blade through the air, searching for a way to get to her other weapons without him noticing it. "But to tell the truth: she always looked a little bit old-fashioned when compared to my sisters or my Teacher."

She heard Edward behind her but this time she knew that she couldn't turn around and help him first before she defeated the old pupil of her mother. Maybe it was some twisted kind of revenge against the woman who had destroyed her life thoroughly.

This man had been her mother's pupil. He carried, in a certain sense, something of her mother in his body. And Nerissa had vowed that she would erase her mother from the face of the world, once she had understood what exactly this woman had done to her and her sisters.

Nerissa's timing, however, had never been one of her fortes. In battle, she could nearly predict everyone's move but that was nothing special. She had been in a lot of fights even though she had never killed anyone. She had some twisted sense of moral and she knew it.

She was stronger than Kay in this point, Kay with her huge ideals who had downright _failed_ in Ishbal when the previously so innocent redhead had erased whole villages with one move of her hand, seemingly without any regrets. Nerissa often wondered how Kay had dealt with everything before she realised that her twin had decided to ignore everything, to numb the pain.


	19. 93: Storm over Barley

**Chapter 93: Storm over Barley**

* * *

Edward watched in terror how Nerissa went down, coughing blood like his former Teacher. Her body betrayed the pain she didn't want to show and even though she was hurt badly enough to be in real danger, she still dragged herself back on her feet and wiped away the blood that was running down her face with the back of her hand. Edward could also see the pure anger in her sapphire eyes and he wondered if he should help her but when she glared at him, he backed off once again. The problem was hardly her skill. She was – like she had proven herself to be more than once before – an extremely skilled fighter but she was still weakened from her fight against the Ishbalan assassin and he saw that her shoulder was acting up. He cursed under his breath before he saw a familiar flash of red when Victoria appeared between the trees, right next to Jade and Alain who were still out cold.

He wanted to warn her that this guy who was beating Nerissa with brute force was probably a little bit too dangerous for her but he saw the warm, golden light that surrounded the injuries of the both Air Alchemists and Edward saw how hard Victoria was working.

She had dedicated herself to a goal and would reach it. She was a lot like him in this age, minus the obsession of bringing her dead mother back. She didn't care about her own injuries as long as the others were alright.

Nerissa gasped in pain as she felt how some of her ribs broke under the pressure of the kick the stupid bastard had just given her but she forced herself to get back up. She wasn't weak. She would fight back as long as she could and she was used to pain. She had so many scars on her body hidden under her neat clothes that she had stopped counting a long time ago. She felt a little bit dizzy due to her blood loss but she forced herself to concentrate. It would be over soon enough; she would make sure of this.

She stood strong; she was the oldest one, the most experienced, the one who had never sold her soul to the military – the one who had made it out alive so far. She coughed blood once more and her vision was blurring as she took a step forwards, realising that her ankle was broken.

The attacker turned around to face her. "Still on your feet?" he asked amused. "My, my, the Hawkeyes are really stubborn people." He picked up one of her kunai which lay around all over the field. "I really wonder why you don't give in, Miss Nerissa. Your mother wouldn't have wanted your genius to be wasted away. She expected more from you than taking attacks that aren't even meant for you…"

Nerissa, however, stood her ground. "My mother never knew me," she said calmly while blood dripped onto her previously white blouse. She ignored it. "The only one who _could consider_ calling herself my mother would never be the one who carried me for nine months. And from what I remember from my sisters' rants, I believe that she has no one who would want to be her child."

She took another step, wincing at the pain running through her leg. Well, it was safe to assume that more than just the ankle had suffered. Especially judging from the funny angle her shin showed. But she was Nerissa Hawkeye, the oldest daughter of General Peter Hamilton, first and best student of Catherina D'Artagan, and she refused to accept that she couldn't order around her body like she would like to. She had to keep herself together even though it was difficult.

But in the end, she was fighting a lost battle. Before she could even transmute a new weapon, she fell down and this time, she knew it, she would not be able to get up again. Her power had left her and she secretly wondered if she would have enough remaining energy to transmute something in first place.

But right when the former student of her mother wanted to kill her to make sure that there would be no remaining daughter of Reine Hamilton would be in the future, some kind of punch threw him away from the unfortunate young woman on the ground. Nerissa looked up and saw that Jade and Alain had both returned to consciousness and like true fighters they had celebrated it with a combined attack which had saved her life. The blond alchemist vowed that she would thank them later on.

"You…" The made student of the late but equally insane Alchemy Master stepped towards the both weak and injured Air Alchemists. "You dare to interfere with my fight? You are way too low!"

A flying kunai interrupted him as a livid Abigail Mustang made her appearance. "How can you even dare to speak with my husband and my daughter this way?" she hissed.

"Shut up, granny," the young man replied. "I don't fight against old ladies."

Little did he know that Abigail didn't take it kindly when someone called her old and that she would always have to say something about it even though she wasn't her always annoyed sister Izumi who would beat up every fool who would even dare to imply that she wasn't the youngest anymore. The Air Alchemist crossed the field with fast, energetic steps that embodied strength and rage. Her hands were in the pockets of her dress and her glare was already more than enough to kill. "I am sure that you didn't really call me old right now," she smiled while she picked up another one of Nerissa's kunai. "I am not in a mood to kill at the moment, you know? But I believe that you just changed that."

Edward used the temporarily distraction to hurry over to Nerissa and to pull her across the field to Victoria who seemed exhausted. "I am sorry that we are asking you for so much, Vicky," he said, "but it would be great if you could patch her up a little bit. We can't have her dying here, right?"

Nerissa leaned against a tree and closed her eyes for a moment. "There is one last thing I have to do," she said before she coughed once more and winced in pain. "Elric, draw this circle somewhere close to the fool, will you? This wounds … there is a good chance that I won't make it – no offence, Vicky, but that is some hard stuff – and if I go down, I will take this bastard with me."

Victoria's face was pale and it was hard for everyone to see her confronted with death all over again but she was probably the only alchemist who would be able to fill the gap her mother had left one day. No one said something about these thoughts to her for obvious reasons but they were in all heads. The girl bit her lower lip as she carefully applied pressure on Nerissa's side and exhaled. "Eight broken ribs but that's nothing a true Hamilton wouldn't survive," she stated in indifference. "And for the record, the lung isn't pierced as far as I know. Still, as soon as this is over, we need to get you to a hospital."

Alain looked at his daughter while he stood up again. "Well, Jade," he grinned. "I don't know how you feel about this but I believe that we should help Abbs a little bit before she can get hurt too."

Edward groaned in frustration. "Vicky just patched you up and you want to return into battle?" he asked with a frown. "Honestly, you are exactly like the chancellor."

Jade grinned widely as she stood up and wrapped one arm around her father. "That's the spirit," she stated. "Extreme bravery that borders to foolishness and suicidal tendencies is typical for us."

* * *

Reine Hawkeye's former pupil was annoyed by the speed and the power of the old woman who had stand up against him. She was certainly a problem and he would get rid off her as fast as possible. But suddenly, he saw how the both Air Alchemists which he had knocked out at the start of the fight were back. They didn't look good but they certainly looked far better than before their sparring or his attack. He wondered for a second how this could be possible as he saw a little girl, as red-haired as the second oldest daughter of his late master, who was healing the wounds of the blond bitch.

_'Well, well,'_ he thought. _'As long as they have a healer and my attacks don't hit them lethally, they can stand up again and return to battle. At the moment, the little girl is the main problem…'_

He dodged another flying kunai of the old lady and disappeared in the woods for a second.

* * *

"Wait a second, Jade!" Abigail ordered as her daughter seemed to want to follow the man. "Don't follow him. It's too dangerous, darling, and I don't want you to run straight into a trap. Let's wait for his return and hope that we will notice him before he can hurt someone."

Edward used the break to draw the array Nerissa had asked for on the ground, much bigger and much more effective if he had been able to if the man had stayed. "Why did he leave?" he asked confused.

"There are many possibilities," Jade said. "Probably he realised that he can't win against all of us and the fight against Nerissa should have taken a lot from him. Or maybe he reorganises himself because he has picked out a new target, someone he didn't paid any attention to before because he or she didn't seem like a potential problem. Or maybe he hopes that we would follow him and he could take us out one by one in the forest where it is harder to fight."

Her father nodded. "My guess would be that he realised that someone is a risk for him," he said.

Nerissa sighed deeply before she forced herself to open her eyes beside the pain. "I need to stay," she said. "The array is connected with the one on my hand. If I leave, everything was in vain. But maybe should Vicky leave. I am just worried that she could get hurt if she stays here."

Abigail shook her head. "As much as I hate to say this," she muttered, "we can't afford to separate. If Victoria leaves, Elric and Owen go with her. We aren't taking any risks today, understood?"

"Understood," Jade said while she watched the dark forest with a frown. Her shoulders were pressed against her parents' shoulders and all three Air Alchemists seemed to be listening to every little sound in the forest. "I don't hear anything," she whispered.

Edward walked over to Victoria who seemed exhausted. "Climb on my back," he said. "We are bringing you back to the house. Nerissa and the airheads will take care of this."

Owen bit his lower lip. He was in his own way handsome with his reddish hair and his green eyes. He looked a lot like Claudio who had stayed in the mansion because he had been tired from the journey. Looking back, this had been probably a good idea. The student, however, tapped Edward's shoulder. "It would be probably better if I would carry her," he said. "You are the better fighter."

"Boys, I can run on my own!" Victoria scolded while she glared at them. "I won the Amestrian Masters and you still doubt my ability to put one foot in front of the other? That's mean!"

"She's right," Owen said calmly. "Anyone who can win the Amestrian Masters can run on her own. And if one of us would carry her, it would slow this person down."

Edward nodded. He was ten years older than Victoria and six older than Owen but he had to give in. They were right. It would be the best to let Victoria run on her own. "Let's go," he said before he grabbed one of Victoria's hands. "It isn't that far. We should make it."

* * *

Izumi could smell the fact that something on the estates of her sister was terribly wrong. She didn't have an Air Alchemist extended senses but she could feel that something was off. In the distance she was her sister's trademark red transmutation glow, her brother-in-law's green light and even Jade's customarily green light. If the whole family minus Phil was in a battle – and the blue light showed her that someone else was fighting there as well, so it wasn't just a little sparring round – the things were bad with the tendency of becoming worse.

The black-haired alchemist sighed deeply before she headed towards the scene of the fight as she suddenly heard Jade yelling "Where did that bastard flew to this time?" and Izumi froze. It meant that something had gone wrong and that their opponent had gotten away. She would compliment him for being able to get away from three Air Alchemy Masters but this person seemed to be a problem.

Izumi decided that she would keep an eye on people who didn't belong to this estate and just as she crossed another field, she ran straight into her old pupil Edward who was accompanied by the little redhead she still knew from Roy's wedding, Victoria, and her older sister's newest student called Owen. But in their mutual haste, they bumped into each other and tripped to the ground.

"Crap, oh crap," Edward cursed. Blood ran down his face once more because he had hit his head.

"Ditto," Victoria muttered darkly while she sat up again. "Did we lose him?"

"No, girl, you don't lose me," an icy voice said, "and even though you are probably the granddaughter of my late master, I am still going to kill you because I made you out as the main problem."

Edward sighed. "Of course," he muttered. "Like Ling said: If you want to shoot the leader, shoot his horse. In this case: If you want to win the battle, kill the alchemist with the talent for healing alchemy first because she is the main problem since she can bring everyone back to his or her feet again."

"Hundred points for Blondie," the man grinned. "Yes, I am sure that Miss Nerissa would have already died if a certain red-haired bother wouldn't have the nerve to heal her, so that she could injure me slightly." He gestured towards his side that looked like someone had embedded a hook into his flesh and ripped off a good deal of his skin and flesh. Very appetising. "So I decided that the redhead dies first before I finish off the rest one by one."

At this point, Owen had been the student of Abigail Mustang and Alain Tempest for more than half a year and he had memorised how his masters dealt with situations like this. Like Miss Jade had said: the spirit was to fight for the comrades, the family was about bravery to the point of suicide and as a student, Owen had made these ideals a part of his own beliefs. He wasn't much of a fighter and had never come even close to holding his own against one of his teachers but he was stubborn and he would not allow this sick person to hurt the little girl. He got quietly up and sneaked up behind the man. No matter how strong he was, Owen knew that he wouldn't have been much of a problem for his teachers if they weren't tired from a long day. And Owen's strength was still fresh because he hadn't taken part in the previous fight and the run hadn't taken much from him.

Edward saw the pupil – what had been his name? Olaf, Owen? – sneaking up to the lunatic and his jaw dropped as he decided that he should distract the rogue alchemist. "Hey, pumpkin-head!" he called out to the man. "If you want to get Vicky, you need to pass me and my Teacher first!"

Izumi nodded fiercely while she lifted her fist. "C'mon if you dare to!" she shouted, covering Victoria's trembling form. "We won't allow you to hurt a little girl. We will fight to our last breath!"

Victoria used the trembling of her body to sketch arrays into the earth to her feet. She was scared and she would never deny it because no one would believe her that she would stay calm when confronted with a rogue alchemist who had studied under her grandmother. She had read Jade's notes on him while Breeze Soul had been asleep and Jade had noted that this man wouldn't hesitate to kill for his goals. She inhaled deeply as her violet eyes widened as she saw how Owen attacked the man from behind. The fight between the both males was hard but soon enough, Victoria saw more blood – _Owen's_ blood – than she ever wanted to see.

Her anger, however, was calmed a little bit as Izumi knocked the man out with a single punch before she used alchemy to tie him up properly while Edward removed all the weapons.

Victoria crossed the field and bound her hair to her usual twin tails once more before she sat down next to Owen. The injury had been on his neck, just like she had feared it would be. She closed her eyes and for a second, she remembered her mother saying that healing neck wounds were different from healing usual wounds. However, she would do everything to save her comrade's life.

* * *

When Owen awoke, he lay on the bed in the room where Madame Abigail kept the health equipment and when he looked around, he noticed that he wasn't the only one. The blond alchemist, Miss Nerissa, was still out cold and it wasn't surprising, judging from the injuries she had taken. The little redhead, Miss Victoria, was also still sleeping but while she was hardly injured, it was probably more exhaustion than anything else. So many transmutations always took a certain toll and she was still so young… On the last bed, however, lay – and that was not really a surprise – Miss Jade. Owen could darkly remember Madame Abigail yelling out for her daughter in the background, meaning that Miss Jade had taken quite a blow at one point in the fight.

"Ah, you are up," Madame Abigail said calmly as she looked at him. "How does your neck feel?"

Owen's hand moved upwards and his eyes widened as he felt the bandage around his neck. "I don't feel anything but I believe that I was injured, right?" he asked.

"Yes," his master replied. "The freak nearly killed you – he would have been successful if Victoria would not have been able to patch you up. She is, however, a little bit tired and we would prefer it to monitor her a little bit before we are sure that everything is alright."

"And your daughter, Madame?" he asked carefully.

Abigail's face hardened for a second and regret appeared in her eyes. "She was too fast for me," she said and maybe there was hurt pride in her voice. "She went after the man, alone, after he ran away and we picked her up in the forest, unconscious and bleeding. She overexerted herself once more." Her dark eyes closed for a second and she extended one hand to stroke her daughter's sweaty hair. "She is a very brave girl," she whispered, probably not even caring if anyone was listening. "She takes after her daddy … and I guess she will always be daddy's little girl."

"Abbs," a woman who looked a lot like his master but who was a little bit younger and slightly smaller entered the room. "Shall I start healing the injuries or will you do it?"

"You may, Izumi," Owen's master said calmly. "I'll talk with your old pupil. He seemed disturbed."

"Edward? You of all people want to speak with someone who has no interest in Element Alchemy, the thing you are basically living for, Abigail?" The younger woman with the dreadlocks asked in slight confusion. "I never thought that you would overcome your pride one day, my dear older sister."

"Pride or no pride, Iz, this isn't about pride. This is about respect," the Air Alchemy Master said, "and I believe that there should be a way to reconstruct his gate. I am going into the library right after my conversation with him. I expect you to report back to me in two hours."

Owen was used to his master's strict orders and he saw in her sister's face that the younger woman knew that it was pointless to argue with Madame Mustang about these things.

* * *

Jade winced in pain as she felt cool hands on her temples and tried to draw an array, somehow, somewhere it had to be possible when she heard her aunt's calm voice. "You are save now, Jade," Izumi said slowly. "You don't have to fight anymore. You are back in the mansion. You lay in a bed. I am going to heal your wounds. You don't have to fight back. I am not going to hurt you. You will be alright."

Jade's body relaxed and she slowly opened her eyes. "I thought it would be over with me," she said softly. "The last thing I remember is a rock flying towards me. Afterwards, everything is black."

Her aunt sighed deeply while warm light appeared as Jade's wounds closed. "You will never learn it, right?" she asked. "Why didn't you wait for someone to back you up? Didn't they teach you in academy that it is foolish to enter unknown territory without a plan or reinforcements?"

"I had to slow this guy down," Jade said. "He was interested in me in first place. He came for me … and Dad first and later Nerissa just stood in his way. I don't even believe that he wanted to let this fight grow in such an outrageous way. Well, as soon as you patch me up, I am going downstairs."

"Please don't tell me that this house has still its dungeon," Izumi sighed while her alchemy closed an especially deep cut across Jade's left cheek. "Really, and here I thought that Abbs grew up a bit."

"Oh, usually dad stores his wine there but technically, it is still a dungeon."

"I told her that she should use it for something else," Izumi muttered.

"What?" her niece chuckled as she stretched her arms, making sure that everything was alright. "We are a prestigious, extremely rich and influential family with the tendency of getting in fights and you tell me that we cannot have a dungeon? So, do you want to have that person in my mama's salon?"

Izumi rolled her dark eyes while she quickly checked Jade's eyes for any signs of a serious injury before she threw some pills into the younger woman's mouth. "You are clear," she said, "but I hope that it was the last time that I need to patch you up, Jadelina."

Jade knew that Izumi's improved skill on Healing Alchemy came to a certain degree from the research she had done before her failed Human Transmutation but she forced herself not to care. Any skill of any person that helped her was a good skill, no matter how and why he had come to be.

* * *

Edward sat in the living room, uninjured and relatively calm. He watched the female air alchemist with a little frown as she put down a mug with hot cocoa in front of him and sat down on a chair.

"I don't drink milk," he told her with a little frown while he wrapped his arms around himself.

She huffed. "You will drink it," she said calmly before she raised an eyebrow. "Just by the way, Elric, was this the first time you were confronted with the real danger of dying in a serious fight?"

He nodded quietly. "And the first time that I felt really useless," he said darkly. "I saw Nerissa getting up after no matter how many blows she took and how your daughter and her father returned to battle even though they were tired and still hurt. Even Victoria was more useful than I … and your student was the one who attacked this psycho first to protect a girl he just knew for some hours beforehand. I travelled with her for a day and know her for more than a year and I just sat there and did nothing."

"Ah, I see…" Abigail nodded wisely. "My nephew had the same problem when he was younger. We all tried to raise him as a gentleman and when he was regularly beaten by Jade, he felt like he was failing her every single time because he was – in his world – supposed to protect her and not the other way around." She chuckled while her dark eyes narrowed. "I will speak with Izumi about this. I believe that it would be the best for you if we were able to push you back onto your former level. I take it that you left out to a certain degree, right? It has to be hard to be the only _useless_ state alchemist…"

"Your daughter can mock me far better than you, Madame Mustang," he replied collected.

"That's one of the many things I taught her when I trained her," she smirked. "And it's typical for the student to surpass the master sooner or later. Furthermore, she takes more pleasure in annoying you than I do. That results in the actual situation, Elric. In order to get the respect and the appreciation you want so much, you need to become stronger than you are at the moment. At your actual rate, you wouldn't last three seconds against anyone who _means_ it." She glared at him. "You aren't drinking."

"I told you that I hate milk, Mrs Mustang," he said.

"You need power if you want to protect the people you care for," she muttered while she tapped her chin. "And power is difficult to attain these days. The old families who have power hardly share with the others because they like to keep everything to themselves. There are few alchemists who gladly share their knowledge." She huffed. "But I offer you the best training you can get in the Eastern Area."

"You have already a student," Edward said, trying to get his thoughts back into the right order.

"There is nothing I could still teach him," Abigail replied. "Owen will continue his training under Jade and Phil, like I said: sooner or later, the student always surpasses the master when he is willed enough – and since it would be difficult to find someone as strong willed as my twins, so it is just the right thing to do to give Owen a master who can still teach him something."

"So you are handing down your students to your children?" Edward asked.

"Owen is the first student in eight years who proved himself as worthy enough to learn Air Alchemy," she said collected. "A technique that allows you to kill without leaving any traces requests a really calm alchemist to learn it, someone who doesn't want revenge for anything. We don't want to be responsible to allow someone to go on some killing spree. You have until tomorrow to decide."

Edward watched how she left and as he looked down, he noticed that the mug was empty.

* * *

Jade's footsteps were soft on the marble floor beneath her as she hurried towards the dungeon of her family. What she had told her aunt was right: the dungeon wasn't used any longer but it was also no surprise that Alain and Abigail had found a new use for the rooms.

Alain, however, stood in front of a former cell and had his arms crossed. "There you are, Jade," he said without turning around. "I hope you know what you are doing."

"Did you already call the police?" she asked while she tapped her chin.

He nodded. "And your brother is also on the way, darling," he said while he wrapped one arm around her waist and hugged her tightly. "My foolish little girl … you had me worried…"

She bit her lower lip. "I am sorry, daddy," she whispered while she rested her forehead against his chest while her fingers grabbed his shirt. "But I needed to buy them more time…"

"That's why you are my little girl," he said and kissed to top of her head.

* * *

Bea's eyes were focused on Phil's darker orbs as they travelled eastwards along with her parents, the Duchesse and the Duke of Volana. The call they had gotten from his father had disturbed Phil deeply and she wished that they would be alone, so she could ask for the details without the ear range of her over-protective parents. Whatever had happened, it had to be very serious for him to be that nervous because after so many years, Bea had come to the realisation that there weren't many things in the world that could make Phil nervous and usually the few things who made him nervous were connected to his twin sister who was on a vacation at the moment.

She laced her long fingers – made to play the piano, not to kill people like her father would complain – through his and smiled before she kissed him softly. "It will be alright, Phil," she promised.

He sighed before he hugged her tightly. "Jade and the others got attacked," he whispered. "And from what Miss Nerissa said before she passed out, this guy was probably the one who attacked you and a former student of her late mother what makes the thing more complicated."

* * *

The police man looked at the young woman in front of him before he looked at the slightly older man who sat on a chair, hands cuffed and glaring at the woman. "…so, just to make sure that I am not messing up any facts, Miss Mustang, you and your father were sparring after diner, right?"

"Yes!" the woman growled while she crossed her arms. She was injured and seemed exhausted.

"And why did you and your father spar after diner, Miss Mustang?" the police man inquired.

She groaned in frustration before she slammed her palms onto the counter. "I believe you have no idea who I am," she hissed. "The full name would be Jadelina Christina Mustang Tempest and yes, I am the Minister for Science. I am a state alchemist, young man, and my father is also a very skilled alchemist. I am used to spar with him after diner. Since we didn't spar in a long time because I was a little bit busy with work and suffered an injury on a mission, we fought with a lot of power, meaning that we were pretty exhausted when we walked back to the mansion. And on our way back, this freak of nature suddenly appeared and attacked us. We had no choice and were knocked out until a … friend patched us up, just in time, so we could protect another friend of ours who came to help us." She grabbed her handbag and threw a stack of photos on the table. "The blonde is the one who took most of the blows," she said after calming down a little bit. "Oh, and the little redhead was nearly killed because she was the one who patched me and the rest up during the fight."

"Miss Mustang, madam, that's a child," the man said surprised.

The slightly small man who had accompanied her sighed deeply as he stepped closer. "You know, it's not about the size of the body, Mister," he said. "Vicky is a damn good alchemist and – I might add – a really good girl. If it weren't for her, we weren't here right now because we were dead."

"You look familiar, Mister…"

"Elric, Edward Elric," the blonde said while he patted Miss Mustang's shoulder. "I and … um … Jade are here for a vacation because the missions took a toll on us and we…"

"…we wanted to meet up with my parents and my aunt who is his teacher, yes," Jade added. "Edward is one of my best state alchemists and we have a lot in common…"

"…like being incredibly stubborn and reckless," he piped in.

"…so we decided to go on a trip together," she smiled before her smile froze as she wrapped her arm around his shoulders. "We are really good … uh … friends, yeah."

They looked at each other and both knew that they couldn't call the other a hypocrite or a liar afterwards because they had both lied like there would be no tomorrow.

* * *

Izumi glared at her older sister who wore a red kimono and had her hair bound to a low ponytail had lay on her left shoulder. "It's like back in school," she muttered while she wrapped her arms closer around herself. "You are still stealing everything from me, big sister…"

"Are you upset because of my offer towards Elric?" Abigail asked calmly.

"Yes, I am," Izumi muttered. "You need to realise, Abbs, that life isn't a place where you can take nearly everything you want to have. I mean … we are sisters and I love you but … I don't want you to get in trouble … and Edward means trouble, Abigail. You have retired years ago. You wanted a peaceful life. That's why you never became a state alchemist. That's why you play the good wife, write your books and take care of the enterprise. You didn't want any action, Abby. You declined so many students over the years … and now you took on the most troublesome student ever? What's going on with you?"

"Edward needs someone who offers him more power. He is a lot like Roy. Too many dreams, you know? And without a lot more power, it will be a fiasco."


	20. 94: Burning Rose

**Chapter 94: Burning Rose**

* * *

Nerissa groaned in pain as she opened her eyes. The light was too bright for her eyes. She was used to libraries and dark study halls. She was used to the dim light in the mental hospital. She was, however, not used to the bright sunlight somewhere in the mountains. _In the mountains?_, she repeated the last thought. She wasn't supposed to be in the mountains. The last thing she could remember was that she had fought against the rogue ex-student of her mother and that she had gotten the beating of a lifetime. Maybe she had died and was in heaven? Or maybe she was just asleep and whatever painkillers they had given her made her dreaming the strangest things in a long time. She looked around and as she saw the dark rocks surrounding her, she realised that she was probably dreaming of the Briggs. Her eyes slowly got used to the brightness around her and she looked down on herself. Her leg was no longer broken and even though she knew that Healing Alchemy could fix a lot it was hard for her to believe that any kind of alchemy could heal a broken leg just like that. So it had to be a dream.

"Hey there, big sister," a familiar voice said and Nerissa slowly turned around before she faced her youngest and by far most favourite sister. Golden hair, exactly the shade of her own, reached down to Serena's waist. Blue eyes, also exactly the same shade of sapphire like hers, sparkled with glee and joy. The skin was as pale as Nerissa had remembered it. And the voice, oh the voice was wonderful.

"Good morning, Serena," Nerissa replied calmly. "I hope you're feeling fine this morning."

"I can't complain, either about the way I feel today or about your demeanour," the younger one said with a wide grin. "And they called you the most impolite out of us … just because you punched that one guy back then when we were younger." Serena sat down on a rock. "And I see that you came a long way from where you stood when I saw you the last time. You surely surpassed yourself."

"Being my own master allows me certainly to do things other people cannot do," Nerissa said while she sat down on another rock. "What about you, Rena? You got yourself killed, little sister."

"Things like that happen, Nessa, and even though I never wanted to leave this way … I had to. Roy and Rize got the bastard who killed Lynn and Martin, right? That's the thing I regret the most: I wasn't able to stop the one who wanted to murder my family. I am such a failure, Nessa, I really am."

The older one rolled her eyes. "I saw the pictures of the place where you were killed, Rena, and I am sure that you didn't go down without a hard fight. You aren't a failure but the first shot hit you in the shoulder. That surely slowed you down, white rose. Don't worry; the bastard got what he deserved."

Suddenly, she froze as she smelled smoke, somewhere close.

Serena's blue eyes widened as she looked around. "Nessa – wake up, now!" she yelled. "Now!"

* * *

"I hate that bastard!" Edward cursed as he and Jade returned to the mansion. "Making us act like the world best friends … I could puke! We hate hypocrites so much and now we became it ourselves!"

Jade nodded while she stopped the car. It was a warm summer morning, so the window was open and she smelled it long before anyone else could have smoked it. "Wait a second," she said as she got out of the car. Terror became visible in the face as she saw it. Fire was all over the smaller house next to the mansion. It had used to be the home of the servants but that had been long ago. Now the servants had their quarters in a more modern, bigger house on the south side of the estates while their old house was used for the ill and the injured people around the mansion – for people like Owen, Nerissa and Victoria who hadn't been awake by the time Edward and Jade had left the mansion.

"Oh crap!" the Air Alchemist cursed as she stormed back to her car. She drove down the hill in her usual neck breaking speed and stopped in the middle of the yard before she grabbed her gloves.

"Where is Roy when you need him, damn!" she yelled, more out of frustration than for the need of a real answer and started to wrap layers of carbon dioxide around the house to suffocate the flames.

* * *

Victoria awoke coughing and smelled the smoke before she looked around in the room. Nerissa was on her bed, her leg in a cast, and the blue eyes were widened in terror. For a moment, the little girl feared that there might be a fire close to them but that wasn't even the case. The fire had to be somewhere else but the heat was already suffocating for the girl who couldn't stand too high temperatures. Next to her, the boy called Owen woke up and he coughed due to the smoke.

"What is happening?" Victoria asked while she rubbed her throat. "I can hardly breathe…"

"Someone is burning down the house," Nerissa said calmly as usual while a sweat drop ran down her left cheek. "I know that it sounds stupid and crazy but we need to stay calm now. If we start to panic now, we use more oxygen than it will be the case when we stay calm. Let's face the facts: none of us is in a constitution that would allow us to get away. We have to trust the others."

Victoria gulped. "I … I don't want to die…" she whispered while she stood up. "I don't want to!"

Her aunt scoffed. "We won't die," she said while she swung around, so that her feet touched the ground. "Come here, Vicky, we will stay strong and stand our ground. We won't panic."

Owen got up to and ripped off the sheets of his bed before he out them into the sink and let the water run. Afterwards, he put them in front of the door and turned around. "That should keep out the smoke for a while," he said calmly.

Nerissa nodded slightly while she hugged Victoria tightly. If they would die – and the blond alchemist didn't even believe in this – they would die together, two of the last branches of the Hamilton-tree would be cut off on the same day. But Nerissa still had hope. _'If you don't get me out of here alive, Elric, I will haunt you until the day you commit suicide!'_ she swore darkly.

* * *

"Mustang, is there something I could do?" Edward asked while he watched how the first flames died under Jade's distrusting glare. "I mean, should I get water or something like that?"

She shook her head while her parents appeared behind her, supporting her in her fight. "You could search for the bastard who started the fire," she said. "We are here extremely careful when it comes to fire – years of experience taught us that. Someone tried to kill the people in the house."

"Who is still in there?" he asked while he headed towards the fountain on the middle of the yard.

"Nerissa, Vicky and Owen," Alain said darkly. "We need to them out of there."

The blond alchemist grinned. "Finally something that screams after me," he said while he emptied a bucket of water over himself. "Well, I am going in. It's a slightly suicidal mission, so it's perfect for me."

Abigail sighed deeply. "You are insane," she stated while she closed her eyes. "But you are eighteen, so I can't stop you if you really want to get yourself killed."

He flashed a grin at her while he ran towards the burning house. "Oh – and Mrs Mustang … should I come back, I will gladly become your apprentice," he said before he disappeared.

* * *

Phil and Bea saw the flames coming from the building and Phil stopped the car. "Bea," he said. "I know that I should help my family … but could you do me a favour? Whoever committed the arson is surely still close … and I would like to ask him some questions." He hugged her tightly. "I see you later, sun."

She nodded and kissed him swiftly before she broke away and got out of the car. She was a soldier after all and it was her job to protect the people of the country. "I see you later, Phil," she said before she hurried down a small path. Her senses awoke and she looked around before she saw the little way in the grass. Someone had come from the mansion and probably hidden in the woods. She sighed deeply before she checked if the safety of her gun was still on. It was and she clicked it off.

It was time for her to shine once more.

* * *

Edward coughed as he made his way through the burning house. For a moment he wondered why the others hadn't come out before he realised that they probably couldn't leave. Nerissa had a broken leg after all, Owen had suffered a neck wound and Victoria was certainly as tired as the world. They were too weak to leave on their own, he decided while he finally reached his destination. The door was – and that surprised him a little bit – locked, so he used Winry's wonderful automail-leg for a new way to open a door: he kicked with all his power against the lock, letting the door explode and fly open.

"Hello, ladies and gentleman," he said with an ironic bow. "I am here to save you, guys."

Nerissa on the bed was terribly pale and for a moment he feared that it was too late for her but then she raised her head. "You are late," she said in her usual scolding and accusing manner.

"Ah, I am sorry, milady," he said while he somehow lifted her onto his back. "I tried to be faster but I was a little bit busy at the police station. I hope you can forgive me."

Owen who was also awake didn't discuss with Victoria as he simply grabbed her and followed Edward on the way to the outside.

* * *

Bea had finally reached the place where the arsonist hid and grabbed her gun a little bit tighter as she inhaled deeply. "Come out and put your hands where I can see them!" she ordered as strictly as she could – and well, after years of ordering cadets and Philippe Mustang around, she was good at it.

The three men, however, were to her terror Aerugians. "You are late, duchess," the leader said. "The burning house contains three sinners. They died for our god."

"You should be happy, sister," a second man said with glee.

"Why?" she asked with a hiss. "God died a long time ago for me."

The leader's eyes widened as he saw someone behind her and he hurried to bow. "Prince…"

Claudio stopped his tracks as he stood next to Bea. "I see a bunch of fanatics who just attacked my girlfriend's family," he said coldly, "and right now I need to remind myself that I don't have the right to kill all of you. Bea, let's tie them up … and make sure that they won't annoy the Mustangs ever again."

The major nodded while she handed over her gun to him and grabbed into her handbag where she still had her handcuffs because she had forgotten to take out after an undercover mission.

* * *

"Finally you decided to show up!" Jade glared at her brother as he jumped out of the car.

"Sorry, sis, but the hero comes always a little bit too late," he smirked as he kissed her forehead. "I sent Bea to get the bad guys. I hope you don't mind, boss."

She rolled her eyes. "Ready?" she asked as she held out her hand. "If I had known that you would come in time, I would have waited for you with this."

"Ah, don't tell me that you tried the big transmutation without me," he sighed. "There is a reason why we usually never do it alone, silly girl."

She sighed. "There are people in the building," she said while she connected her palm with his.

"You don't tell me that you are doing this why there are people in the house, Jade, yeah?"

"Nerissa, Vicky, Owen and now also Edward," she shrugged. "Hey, Edward tries to get himself killed!"

"Did you finally drive him so far that he considers suicide to get away from you?" he asked.

* * *

Edward looked over his shoulder. "C'mon, Owen, we nearly made it!" he yelled. "Let's get out!"

Victoria clung to Owen's shoulder like she never wanted to let go again and for the first time in her life, she found herself praying to a god that would let them all out alive. Her fingernails nearly destroyed his shirt but she came to the conclusion that this was the smallest problem at the moment.

"Alright!" the twelve year old boy nodded while he speed up a little bit. "I don't want to stay either."

"I somehow under stand this feeling," Nerissa muttered while she bit her lip. "Tell me, Elric, am I too heavy for you? I don't want you to die out here."

"Technically, Nerissa, we are still in the inside of the building," he said, "so I would die _in_ here."

"Hey, guys, I have a suggestion for you," Victoria rolled her eyes. "Let's not die, so we don't have to argue about things like that. Don't you agree?"

"Not to die seems like a great plan at the moment," Edward said while he looked around. "Ah, over there is the exit. We are as good as out of here. Isn't that great?"

"Wonderful," Nerissa said sarcastic as always. "But who would have thought that the Mustangs are that rich? I mean, they have a whole house for the sick and the injured from what this looks like."

"The Mustang-clan is one of the richest families in Amestris," Victoria stated from behind. "They made their money with business, just like the Hamiltons, and they are a traditional military family, also just like the Hamiltons or the Grummans."

"And in cases of doubt we can always rely on our walking data base," Edward smirked. "Well done, Vicky. I believe that answers Nerissa's burning questions."

"No jokes about flames and fire as long as we aren't out of here!" Owen yelled.

* * *

The Air Alchemists lost their concentration just when the four others left the burning house. Jade dropped her hands and broke the connection with her brother and hurried over to her injured comrades. Her parents also gave up. Even four masters of Air Alchemy hadn't been enough to get rid of the fire. They had just been able to slow it down considerably and to lessen the heat and the smoke.

"Welcome home, Philippe," Abigail said while she hugged her son tightly. "We missed you."

The Duke of Volana crossed the yard to the dark-haired woman and extended his hand. "You have to be Philippe's mother," he said calmly. "I see that he takes after you when it comes to the will to fight."

She nodded while she shook his hand. "We don't like watching how innocents die," she said.

* * *

Olivier threw clothes into the suitcase on the bed while Lars sat on her hip, happily toying with her hair. Bendix was also packing clothes and his face was serious as he turned towards her. "So, we are heading eastwards?" he asked. "Why are you so sure about this?"

"Jade called," she said. "Something went wrong and she isn't sure if they can deal with it alone. And from what I heard, Phil also left."

"And leave it to Jade and Elric to mess up a mission," Bendix rubbed his temples. "That could get really dirty. Maybe Jade lost her nerves and killed Elric, so she needs now someone who helps her to let the body disappear." He smirked. "But I believe that alchemy would help her more than we could in that case. Well, a comrade's wish is something we should take seriously."

* * *

"…and that's Victoria Hamilton, one of the daughters of the chancellor," Bea finished the presentation of the amestrian civilians to her parents. "Miss Nerissa over there is a valuable asset for every mission but right now she is on a vacation with the others."

"Just like Vicky," Nerissa said while she raised her head. She was checking the items the assassins had had with them with her sharp eyes, searching for a reason why they had been attacked. After the four people had left the house, Alain had speeded up the fire and now the house was gone forever. The rich family had never really cared for the former quarter of the servants and like Abigail had said: they had waited for the day it would finally burn down.

Phil sat on his favourite chair with Bea on his lap while he oiled his automail. "We need to tell the police that we caught three people who attacked us," he said while he looked at his father for a second.

"The police man doesn't like us the slightest bit," Jade said. "Honestly, when we brought the guy who put Owen, Nessa and everyone else besides Izumi nearly into hospital, the stupid cop thought that we attacked first. Edward had to tell him that we wouldn't have let him live if we had attacked first."

"Ah yes, the violent state alchemists who kill whoever gets into their way…" Bea said sarcastically.

"Bea, maybe you and Phil could visit the bastard tomorrow and maybe you can identify him as the one who attacked you in my office," Jade said with a wide smile. "It could be, however, useful if you would eclipse the fact that you and my brother are a couple."

Suddenly, Nerissa gasped as she held up a golden necklace with a rose cut out of a ruby. "I can't believe that family heirloom of my family belongs into the hands of an Aerugian fanatic!" she hissed before she looked at Victoria who was curled up to a little ball next to Owen. "Vicky, show me that you made your homework and tell me something about this necklace," she smiled.

The redhead closed her eyes. "As far as I can remember the old pictures Roy showed me, there was no picture of Aunty Serena where she didn't wore this necklace," she said lazily. "The necklace was in our family for two centuries before Grandfather Peter claimed it for his lastborn daughter in 1892."

"Perfectly remembered," Nerissa said while she wrapped the golden chain around her fingers. "There was no day as long as I remember when Serena didn't wear this necklace, so I wonder why she didn't take it to her grave. It was her trademark after all."

Izumi's eyes narrowed as she looked at the necklace. "That leads to another question," she said. "If the necklace was really always around your sister's neck and from what I remember, Serena was a strong woman who could hold her own against most opponents … well, now the real question isn't why it isn't in Serena's coffin. The real question is: _how could it ever leave Serena's neck_."

* * *

Olivier was sleeping with her head on Bendix' shoulder while Lars was on her lap fast asleep as well. The blond man smiled at his little but absolutely perfect family. He was more than happy – especially since Lars was a surprisingly enthusiastic sleeper and spared his parents from a lot of nights without sleep. Bendix had feared the worst, remembering that neither he nor Olivier had ever been good sleepers in their parents' eyes but Lars had taken a liking to sleeping all the time – especially when there was music around him. The day when Olivier and Bendix had both had to attend important meetings where they couldn't bring their baby, they had bribed Laila into taking him to her piano lesson where Lars had slept the whole time. It had been easily earned money for Laila.

Olivier stirred a little bit and looked at her husband. "When do we reach Barley?" she asked.

"Two hours," he replied before he bent down to kiss her forehead. "Try to sleep a little bit more. When you wake up the next time, we should be there and I really hope that Jade has a good explication for this."

"Nah, I am totally on her side," the blond woman laughed. "Hey, we got out of eating diner with my brother and my parents. I am very happy that we could ditch them."

"I am more worried about the reason why Jade called us," he said. "She sounded disturbed and nearly panicked and we both know one thing a little bit too well, right? Jadelina Christina Mustang Tempest never loses her cool about something minor – so it has to be something pretty serious."

"That's the thing that makes me worry too," Olivier said while she stroked her son's silver blond hair. "Your godmother surely likes to get in trouble, huh?"

* * *

The silence in the room was deafening after Izumi's question and everyone looked at Olivier who had gotten paler than usually. Her hand trembled and she pressed her son close to her chest before she opened her mouth to answer. "That's a good question," she said, "and if it helps you: the last time I saw Serena, she wore her necklace. I saw it under her jacket when she stretched. But hell, we never even found her body, so how the hell am I supposed to know if she wore her necklace when she died?"

Nerissa's sapphire eyes narrowed. "Wait a second, you declared her as dead without finding her body? Why?" she asked while her fingers tapped nervous rhythms on the smooth surface of the table.

"It wasn't even me who declared her as dead to tell the truth," Olivier said while disgust appeared on her face. "You need to know that Lieutenant General Raven, my special friend, was up at Briggs the night of Serena's death. The last time I saw her, she was leaving for her post – the post she probably never reached because she was attacked on the way. Other soldiers found a lot of blood and alarmed me and … Raven. That bastard looked out of the window and decided that with the blizzard outside, she had no chance to survive somehow out there. I tried to argue with him. I reminded him that other state alchemists had survived more dangerous situations. So he said that if I didn't want to lose my position, I should leave the field to him … and because I counted on Serena's sense for duty, I assumed that she would come back to the fortress after the blizzard. She never came back so I had to accept that she was killed by some Drachman rebel – you know that this is still the official explanation."

Jade tapped her chin while she walked around in her father's study where they had met up. "Daddy?" she asked carefully. "You still have those cards on the Briggs, right? Could you get them? And Iz, you know the mountains better than anyone but Olivier, right? I need you to answer some questions."

"Sure," Alain said while he took a huge card out of the closet and put it on the desk. "Here it is."

"Here is the fortress…" Phil said who was catching up with his sister's thought and took a red pen.

"And here is Serena's post," Olivier added, also understanding what they were trying to figure out.

"From how I see it, the fastest way would have been like this," Claudio piped in, adding a yellow line.

"The official reports mentioned that Serena was killed exactly here," Bendix drew a red circle around a clearing. "Or at least this was the place where the blood and the gloves where found."

"If you are looking at it from this point; when I visited the mountains the last time, I saw a lot of broken trees around this area," Izumi said while she bent over the card. "First I thought that it was an avalanche … but it didn't look like one. When I now think about it again, I would say it was Envy in his true form. From how Roy described it, he was gigantic."

Bendix nodded while he rocked his son back and forth. "Envy said that he shot her from behind, so why should he have gone on such a rampage?" he asked.

"Well, I don't think that Envy was the one we should use as an example of honesty and verity," Phil said drily. "Well, let's look at it from this perspective: Envy attacked Serena from behind hence the blood. But he never said if she died from that single shot. Let's assume that she was still alive afterwards and got away. Envy returns to arrange the place of crime in a way that would make it look like the Drachmans really killed her. Probably he wanted to use this event as a reason for us to attack Drachma, completing the blood seal. But then he has to realise that the most important thing was missing: the dead body of Serena Hamilton. He still thinks that she is dead, so he basically has to believe that she is ruining his plans even after her death…"

"…and since our favourite he-she-it has a pretty short temper, Envy loses it…" Jade went on.

"…causing the destruction Izumi saw," Edward nodded slowly.

"That leaves two questions and one is probably easier to answer than the other," Alain said.

"How could Envy know when Serena was coming?" Claudio's eyes narrowed.

"And where is she now, given that this creature didn't kill her for real?" Bendix tapped his chin once more while he thoughtfully looked outside the window.

"I believe it's safe to assume that the shape shifter used the appearance of Lieutenant General Raven," Olivier said while she paced around in the study. "He was a little bit too fast with declaring her as dead. Miles and Buccaneer both said so when we spoke about the event later on."

"And for where she is…" Jade sighed. "Let's imagine that Liv is right and Serena saw Raven-Envy before he could attack her. Probably she didn't see Envy's _palm-tree-and-sports-bra-appearance_, so if she is still out there, she probably thinks that Lieutenant General Raven has a little secret of his own and the wish to see her dead. The last thing was maybe even true…"

"…and since Raven is still declared as missing, she believes it's better for her to lay low," Phil said with a little frown.

"You are so smart, son," Abigail smiled while she leaned against the wall. "But there is still one little problem in our theory: how can we be sure that Serena didn't die form the wound?"

Bendix sighed deeply. "Right now it's even hard for me to believe that it was **her** blood," he said.

Edward nodded as he caught on. "The uniform, Olivier, which uniform did Miss Serena wear?" he asked as he looked at the fellow blonde. "She was a woman, **is** a woman … so she probably wore a little bit more than a man, right?"

"It's sexist as hell but yeah, she always wore some layers more than any man," Olivier said. "She was so thin, I personally ordered her into wearing a bra, an undershirt, a t-shirt, a pullover, the uniform jacket and the typical coat." She shrugged. "And I believe she had caught a minor cold before she … **went missing**," she added with a certain emphasis on the '_went missing_'. "So she probably wore even more."

"Daddy?" Jade looked at her father with a faint smile on her face. "You happen to possess the standard gun of the Drachman army, yes? Could you get it? Olivier, Nerissa – you are with me. We see each other in ten minutes on the yard."

* * *

Alain wasn't much of a gunman but he had learned to shot a little bit when he had been younger and had accompanied his father to the chase. The old Master Tempest had been a good gunman but his son had never shown any interest. Alain still possessed some guns and his children had used some of them for training during the time on the academy.

"What does Jade plan?" Edward asked while he stood on the yard along with the others.

"I guess she wants to check if the bullet even had a chance to hurt Serena," Claudio said calmly while he checked the gun. "You took a good care of it," he said as he looked at his potential father-in-law.

Finally, the three women appeared with some mannequin that wore many layers of clothes.

"I would have tried it out myself," Jade shrugged, "but I don't trust your aim enough, daddy."

"You are cruel, Jade," Alain sighed while he took back the gun. "Well, which distance do you guess?"

"Thirty metres, at least," Nerissa stated. She was extremely pale and stood a good distance away from the dummy on her crutches. "Anything closer and Serena would have heard the breath. She had sharp ears and that's why I have a hard time to believe that she wasn't warned – especially since Olivier said that Serena wasn't wearing a cap or something like that."

Alain merely nodded as he walked away from the dummy until the distance was alright. Bendix who had stayed inside the house with Lars watched the scene from the window was extremely pale too.

Master Tempest raised his hand and shot once, hitting the shoulder of the mannequin before he lowered his gun again and joined his daughter as she looked at the hole. The dummy had fallen down upon the impact but the bullet hadn't even gotten through all the layers.

"So, what does this mean for us?" Bea asked quietly while she wondered how she should explain all of this to her parents. "The dummy didn't die…"

"That means that chances are high that Serena's death was a lie," Izumi said. "I believe that we should call the rest of the crew. We may know that Serena left the Briggs intact but we don't know how the blood came to be and where she is now. I guess we need to find her because from what I heard from you, she was a good alchemist and could be helpful for future problems-"

"That it is!" Edward interrupted her. "She is an alchemist! She even is a Water Alchemist! Nerissa, tell me one thing: is it possible for one of your kind to change the colour of water so it seems red and like blood? And if it is possible … can Serena do something like that?

The older blond alchemist turned around to face him before she slowly nodded. "This is the easiest task in the book of a Water Alchemist," she replied.


	21. 95: Moving

**Chapter 95: Moving**

* * *

"…and this is where Aunty Jade and Uncle Phil grew up?" Laila asked very interested as the car stopped in front of the mansion. "If I were Jade, I would have never left this place."

"My aunt basically threw them out to make them get a life," Roy said while he grabbed Riza's hand. "So, I really want to know what this is about."

"Hey, Roy-boy," his aunt Chris smirked as she opened the door. "You are late. I didn't raise you to be too late every time something important is going on."

"What are you doing here?" he asked. "I thought Jade called just me…"

"The times she relied on your brain are over. This is something important and she needs every brain because we are trying to track down a genius," the lady said while she tried to lighten a cigarette, just to have it taken away by her youngest sister seconds later.

"Roy, Riza, Jade awaits you, Nick and Laila in the library," Izumi said. "Jade is trying to break a code without knowing anything about the base the code was made of. She throws a fit everything five minutes and I strongly believe that my husband will never think that she is small and innocent again."

Roy sighed. "Nothing against Sig but the person who needed this long to figure out that Jade isn't small and innocent has to be a little bit dense, Izumi. She blackmails everyone who is dumb enough to make a mistake as long as she is around," he said. "Well, the library it is."

"We are all going to die," Nick said unusually pessimistic he followed Roy down the hallway.

"Oh yeah, I can already hear her," Roy smirked widely as Jade's loud voice nearly shattered some windows.

"…I REFUSE TO BE BEATEN BY SUCH A SIMPLE CODE!" she yelled. "DAMN THIS! I AM OUT OF HERE! I NEED TO SMOKE … OR TO CRY … OR TO EAT TONS OF ORANGES!"

"Ah, it looks like something isn't going the way she wants it to go," Roy said relaxed. "Well, maybe we can help her … but kids, be careful, yes? This Jade isn't the one you know. This one is going to rip off your head when you provoke her. The best thing you can do is staying close to me or your mother." He turned to look at Izumi. "How bad is it this time?" he asked quietly.

"Oh, it's not that bad," his aunt shrugged. "I saw her in worse times. This time she is just yelling and throwing pens at Phil so far. Alain keeps her calm with oranges and Claudio made her sleep trice so far. Bea is taking care of Phil, Owen and Vicky are keeping a low profile and hide under one of the desks, Abby is having the time of her life with all the guests, Olivier is laughing at Jade's obsession and plays with her son and the rest is trying to help Jade somehow."

"Who is Owen?" Riza asked with a slight frown on her face.

"Abbs' student," Izumi said with a smile. "The boy is friendly and keeps Victoria save. Oh, and Edward is trying to keep Nerissa from getting up but so far it's more dodging her crutches than doing anything productive. Winry is more successful so far, she keeps Nerissa busy. Alphonse and Mei were making out the last time I saw them and right now we are waiting for Jade to have the most brilliant moment of her life. I am sure that if there is someone who can beat the code, it's Jade but she is making it harder than necessary for herself. You know how she can get when codes are involved."

Roy snorted. "Oh yes, a blood hound on the chase has nothing on her in these times," he said before he stopped. "And did Jade already smell blood?"

"If she smelt it, it was probably Edward's," Izumi said. "No, I don't think that she has the slightest clue on whatever she is trying to figure out. I mean … she excels in breaking alchemistic codes and usual codes but now she tries to figure out a codename, an alias."

Riza's sharp eyes narrowed. "Why would Jade want to figure out a codename?" she asked with a slight frown. "I believe she was the one who said that she stays away from stuff like that."

"That was before she felt personally offended, Riza," Abigail sighed as she passed them. The owner of the mansion smiled brightly as she hugged everyone tightly and than she grabbed the twins. "I am taking care of them while you try to help Jadelina, alright?" she asked.

"How can someone personally offend Jade anyway?" Roy asked with a scoff. "Did someone insult her brain?"

"Hundred points for the candidate," Izumi sighed. "Jade feels very insulted that someone probably faked her own death and now Jade wants to track her down and probably strangle her."

Laila huffed. "But faking the own death is so last season," she muttered under her breath.

"The point is that this happened three years ago and we wouldn't even know about this if some Aerugian fanatics hadn't tried to murder Nerissa, Vicky and Owen," Izumi replied. "One of them had a necklace in the pocket that belongs to our now missing friend. And right now I am betting with Edward if Jade or Nerissa will kill her first."

"So, who is our missing person?" Riza asked as she raised her eyebrow.

"Oh, you both know her too," Izumi grinned. "I believe that the name Serena Hamilton means something to you both, right? We heard from Olivier that her body was never found."

Roy froze. "You have to be joking, Izumi," he whispered.

"No, I am not," she said. "There are some things I would never joke about."

He rolled his eyes before he sighed. "How many percent did Jade give the chance that Serena is still alive?" he asked while he scratched his neck.

"Thirty," Izumi said with a shrug. "That means that she has to be really sure. I would have thought that she would say twelve when I first asked her … she really surprised me with her optimism this time."

Laila crossed her arms – just the same way Nerissa would do it. "Thirty percent is _low_," she said.

"Thirty percent on Jade's scale equals eighty-seven on Phil's or any other sane person's," the housewife said while she opened another door. "Jade believes that it can't come worse when she always counts on the worst possibility. This way she is always surprised in a good way."

Finally she opened the door to the study. Laila tackled her younger sister in a hug before she narrowed her eyes at the sight of Victoria's exhaustion. She was supposed to be on a vacation for Truth's sake – but on the other hand, with no one to control her, Victoria probably read all night long. Next to the young redhead sat an older boy, maybe twelve, with reddish hair and a bright smile. Nerissa sat on a chair with her leg propped up and her crutches were on her side. Her messy hair was partly braided and she looked younger than usually. Phil leaned against the window and read something while his arm was casually wrapped around Bea's shoulders. Alain Mustang stood on the desk, frowning at some files while he ate some oranges. Edward was – once more – drinking Abigail's hot cocoa without realising that he was drinking milk without any complaints but neither Winry nor someone else cared to tell him.

Jade paced around in the study, hastily peeling another orange. Her dark eyes were narrowed and directed at the wall where a huge card with all the small villages and the big cities hung. "I'll find her – and even when it is the last thing I'll ever do!" she hissed.

"It's a challenge, sister dear," Phil tried to calm her down. "You can do this, I know it."

Nerissa sighed deeply as she applied more make-up on the purple-greenish bruise on her right cheekbone to hide it. "Serena is a true genius; there was never a hint of doubt about this. To track her down will be _really_ hard – especially since she did nothing wrong. Any soldier is allowed to leave his post without any consequences when he is attacked by a superior, an equal or a subordinate," she said while she looked in a mirror for a moment. "And should Envy have used the outer appearance of Raven like we assume it at the moment, well, Serena left without breaking a single law."

"That mean we have – technically – no real reason to hunt her down," Alain said while he put both hands on his daughter's tense shoulders. He knew her and he knew about her feelings quite well. She hated to lose more than anything else and in her eyes she had been losing the game against Serena all the time because she hadn't been able to realise the illogicalness of the story she had been told.

"Wrong," Edward said while he put down his empty mug and sat down next to Victoria on the couch. "I believe that we have a very good reason: Serena is Nerissa's last remaining sister. And they are both the last ones left who have a clue about Water Alchemy."

Victoria nodded slightly while her fingers tapped on the smooth surface of the table. "And she is a state alchemist after all," she said while she crossed her arms. "My mother always said that state alchemists are the ones who even need to act their position when they don't want to."

Jade coughed and it sounded suspiciously like "Ishbal" and Roy nodded in agreement with both.

"So what will we do now with this knowledge?" Nerissa asked with a deep frown on her pale forehead while she poured new hot cocoa in Edward's mug. "What are our possibilities at the moment, Mr Chancellor?"

"Even though it could be helpful, Serena did nothing that would justify the involvement of the police," Roy said. "And even if it would be reasonable, I wouldn't do it. No police man in this country is a match for an angry state alchemist that feels cornered and I don't want a scandal at the moment."

Owen nodded while he held his head down. "From what I gathered, Miss Serena is extremely smart, so I doubt somehow that it would have any use to ask the police to find her," he muttered.

"I agree," Roy smiled at him before he looked at his daughter. "Vicky, I believe you followed the whole discussion for a longer time than I … what's your opinion, darling?"

She raised her head and a faint smile crossed her face as she rubbed her eyes. "If I was her, I would hide somewhere where no one would ever expect me," she said calmly. "She isn't stupid after all…"

Riza snorted. "One of the few people I know who had excellent scores in every test she took," she said while she rubbed Laila's back in a comforting manner.

Roy sighed. "She even had an incredibly high score during her state alchemist exams, every freaking year she beat me," he said. "When she first became the Mermaid Alchemist, her score even beat Jade's: one-hundred-and-seven percent to my cousin's one-hundred-and-three. She's skilled, that's a fact."

"And very smart," Bea who had known Serena a little bit added. "She's one of the smartest."

"Alright," Alain said as he closed the book he had been reading. "Let's figure out the alias now."

"Okay," Jade sighed. "Fullmetal, any ideas?"

"From what I heard, Serena was always silent and you know what they say about still waters," the blonde said with a wide smirk.

"They are pretty deep," Alain smiled.

Nerissa raised her head and the braided tresses of her golden locks slipped down her shoulder as she slapped herself. "I am so stupid," she said with a frown. "Serena's nickname, the name hardly anyone knew because she had hardly people she really trusted." She held up one of her most trusted knives and mentioned towards the wall with the card. "Kay used to call her Little Lioness."

Riza nodded slowly. "So you think the same thing I think right now, yes?" she asked.

Jade's dark eyes narrowed as she looked at the point Nerissa's knife had pierced. "Lionnenburg in the Western Area," she muttered calmly. "The last place on earth where I would hide."

Roy nodded while he walked over to the both younger women. "Lionnenburg it is," he said while he pulled out the knife and handed it back to Nerissa. "You have surely your way with a knife," he said.

She scoffed, like always when she was complimented. "We may know where she is but we don't know her name yet," she replied coolly.

Riza smirked. "Well, I believe it's time for us to head home, Nerissa," she said, "because if we want to get Rena back, we should start to search on a place where she spent a good deal of her time."

* * *

The red-haired woman sat up in her bed and rubbed her eyes before she got up and walked downstairs to drink a glass of milk. She had had a nightmare once more, dreaming of her former fiancé – and his death in the cold emptiness of the Briggs. She rubbed her arms to create warmth but it was a lost cause. She sighed deeply as she put the empty glass in the sink where the housekeeper would find it in the morning. The red-haired lady herself, however, took a shower before she got into her oldest clothes, her mission clothes, before she left her mansion in the eastern hills of Creta.

* * *

"…it's your move," the man's calm voice said as he put down his black knight.

"Let me think a moment," the woman replied as she circled around the table with the chessboard. Long golden strands fell down her back and touched her waist. "Oh yes, now I see it," she grinned before her white bishop beat the queen of the man. "Pay more attention to your queen, boss," she said smugly.

"The only real problem you have now that I will take your knight," he replied.

She hesitated a moment before her rook mercilessly defeated his knight. "What did you say?"

"You know that you can't run from everything forever," he said while he leaned back.

She chuckled darkly. "It's funny to hear this from you," she said. "Didn't you do the same? Have you any clue how much you hurt the ones who loved you? Your wife…"

"…couldn't care less about me," he said. "No, I knew what I was doing and I did what was the best I could do for my country. Don't forget that, _Lily Blue_."


	22. 96: East and West

**Chapter 96: East and West**

* * *

"Aunty…" Nick looked at Nerissa. "Let's look at the alias-problem from another perspective: which aliases or nicknames did you and your sisters used?" He had the list with all the women in Serena's age that lived in Lionnenburg on his lap and his green eyes were narrowed. "Please…"

"Alright, alright…" Nerissa closed her eyes. "I will start with Lynn, she was never that creative: Violet Summers, July Lavender, Anastasia Force, Helena Powers and Silver Lily. Kay's known aliases were Black June, Victoria Mayer, Aileen Miller and Golden Rose. And to end this and to uncover my undercover identities: Viola Simons, Eva October and Blue Lily-"

Nick's grin started to widen as he interrupted her. "Gotcha, Serena," he said. "Lily Blue lives in the outskirts of Lionnenburg since two years. Her date of birth is _coincidentally_ exactly the same as Serena's and – hey! – they even look extraordinarily similar…"

Nerissa sighed. "Of course," she muttered. "Such a smart little girl … she's my sister after all…"

"And hard to track down, like it had to be expected," Roy ruffled his son's hair with a proud and nearly smug grin on his face. "Well done, my boy."

Jade who had been asleep on the couch stirred slightly and rubbed her eyes as she sat up. "How far are we?" she asked.

"I really hope we don't disappoint you but Nick figured it out," Laila said.

"Lily Blue, Lionnenburg, Jonathan-Llewellyn-Street 12," Nick said smugly.

"Charming – and how it had to be expected," Jade said. "How did you do it, Nick, my boy?"

"I thought that it would make sense," he said with a shrug. "When I would hide from everyone, I would hardly use an alias a bunch of people knew somehow. And I assumed that Serena would know that her sisters who know her better than anyone else could get behind the mystery around her so-called _death_…"

Jade smiled at him. "You are bloody brilliant," she stated friendly.

* * *

The red-haired woman stood on top of a hill and looked over the valley to her feet. Her arms were crossed and her green eyes narrowed. "Welcome to Amestris, Madame D'Artagan," she whispered. "No matter how hard you try, it seems like you just can't stay away, huh?"

She had been born and raised in Creta as a member of the aristocracy but she had been always drawn to Amestris – ever since she had been sixteen and madly in love. She had raised Nerissa Hawkeye since the blonde had been six and confused. It had been a favour for Peter Hamilton, Nerissa's father, at the beginning but the professor had grown to love the blond girl with the talent for painting. But this visit had nothing to do with Nerissa, no matter how much Catherina missed her first pupil. This time, the red-haired woman had come to get finally a little bit of closure from her past.

* * *

Golden hair flew as the both people in black danced. Their steps were perfectly timed, synchronised and light. The young woman laughed as the man lifted her up in the air and as the music stopped, she pressed her ear against his chest to listen to his steady and calm heartbeat.

"You got better, Lily Blue," he said smiling while he held her close. "I am proud of you … but on the other hand, you always learned fast."

"Thanks," she said before she reached behind him to put his king in checkmate. "I believe I just won again, boss. You are losing your touch I believe."

He looked at her with his usual boyish grin. Her long hair was down as usual and framed her pale face with the high cheekbones and the bright blue eyes. Her black dress reached down to her knees and left her forearms uncovered. Around her left wrist, she wore a golden bracelet with a coin as a pendant.

"My girl," he said as he rubbed her tense shoulders. "My little girl…"

She looked back at him. His bright red hair showed first lines of grey but all in all, he had aged well and with dignity. He was forty-seven years old and all the little lines on his face showed that he had led a happy and content life so far. "I am not so little anymore," she replied with a hint of wistfulness in her calm and pleasant voice. "Well, I say goodnight for today, boss."

* * *

"…we will travel in several teams because that's the smartest thing we can do," Nick said, holding up a complicate scheme. "Alright … hey, Nerissa – you don't fail at transmutations that change the outer appearance, right? It was someone else who never got that, right?"

Olivier on the couch coughed and it sounded suspiciously like "My brother".

"Of course I don't fail it," Nerissa sighed. "Why do you ask?"

"Can you make yourself look around ten years older than you are?"

"Can you score goals, Nick?"

"Of course I can!" he grinned.

"I thought so," she smiled. "Ten years older? Give me a moment…"

He watched her leave before he turned and looked at Victoria. "You're with Uncle Ben and Aunty Liv. Laila, you are with Alphonse and Mei, so say Hi to your new brother, will you?" He grinned for a short moment at the blonde before he caught himself. "The twins go with mom and dad, obviously. Bea and Phil go together – and I'll be with Jade and Claudio-"

"Owen will be with me," Victoria interrupted him forcefully.

"Okay, sis," he sighed and rearranged some arrows and flashes on his paper. "Abigail will travel with her sisters, Izumi and Chris, and Sig will go with Alain. Anyone who has a problem?"

Victoria raised her hand. "I have a question, Nick," she said sweetly.

"You can ask," he sighed and rubbed his wrist.

"How did you arrange the groups?" she asked innocently.

"I looked after the strength and the intelligence," he replied.

"Alright, now I have a complaint," Laila said. "Why are Edward and Aunt Nessa in the same team? That so not fair, Nick!"

"Someone needs to keep her in check, just in case that she would lose it again. She will act as Winry's mother," Nick said while he felt his headache coming closer and closer. "Anything else?"

"…does this look okay?" Nerissa asked shyly. Her blond hair had some grey lines in it and her usual perfect makeup suddenly showed some wrinkles and crowfeet around her eyes. She wore a plain blue dress and her hair was up in a bun, hold up by a beautiful crafted hairclip.

"Perfect," Nick complimented. "You're Winry's mother for now."

Phil walked over to the card on the wall and took out some pins. "If we all travel straight to New Lanchester, it would be obvious that something is up with us. No, since we are smart, we are travelling to other towns first. Team Orange: Jade, Claudio, Nick on the one hand and Dad and Sig on the other one – you will go to Midgenbool first. Team Lemon: Vicky, Owen, Olivier, Bendix and Lars – your first destination will be Willow. Team Rice: Laila, Mei and Al-"

"Um, can we be Team Panda?" Mei asked while she stroked Xiao Mei.

"If you want to, yes," Phil sighed. "Well, however, you go straight to New Lanchester with the next train. Laila, I believe you know the town in theory, right?"

The blond girl tapped against her own forehead. "It's all in here," she said.

"Good," her uncle smiled friendly. "Team Housewife … I trust you to find a way to raise no suspicions."

Abigail and Izumi shared a wide grin.

"Team Royalty: You know the drill."

Roy rolled his eyes.

"One question," Nick said. "Why such crappy names for the teams?"

Phil looked at him in mocked hurt. "These names are wonderful!"

Victoria sighed deeply. "Boys…" she muttered under her breath.

"…will be boys," Laila added. "But I am okay with the plan."

* * *

"…you come here quite often, Miss D'Artagan," the woman behind the counter said. "Where do you want to go this time, Madame?"

"The City of the Lion," Catherina muttered darkly.

"Lionnenburg?" the young blonde asked.

"Yes…" the professor sighed while the hand in her pocket held her knife a little bit tighter for a second. "How much is it, Miss?"

"650 cenz, Madame," the blond girl said.

"Voilà, Miss," Catherina said as she handed over the money. "Have a nice day."

* * *

"…that's the house where your mother grew up?" Mei asked with huge eyes.

"Yeah," Laila said as she stepped back. "Al, if you would please open up for us…"

"This house is bigger than the Chan-palace!" Mei said as Alphonse unlocked the door. "Wow…"

They entered and Laila flicked on the light with the back of her hand. "Looks like no one is here yet," she said while she made her way upstairs. "Let's go – we are the first ones here and we should use this for our advantage. The less people we have here, the better we can act."

Alphonse nodded as he set down the key. "It's the first time that we can act before the other even reach the location!" he said. "We should start our investigation in Serena's room – maybe we find a reason why she never told anyone that she's still alive. She has to have a reason."

"That's something we should assume seeing what she left behind," Mei said, looking around in the elegant and noble entrance hall they were standing in. "I don't want sound superficial but this house is more than just high-class. This embodies a great strength – and much pride."

Her boyfriend nodded while he walked up the stairs. "Let's, um, stay together, yes? It's not our own house, so I believe that it would be smarter when we don't separate."

Mei stopped as she saw a picture on the wall. It showed a tall red-haired man with four little girls. One of them was as red-headed and green-eyed as himself, another one was silver-haired and had purple eyes while the last both girls who carried flowers in their hands were blond and blue-eyed. "Look at this," she said. "That is a family picture…"

"Ah yeah," Laila said as she looked over her shoulder. "The sisters and their father in happier days … and look at the flowers Serena and Nerissa carry – and you get why Serena probably 'borrowed' Nessa old nickname instead of making of something of her own."

"Nerissa carries a blue lily," Alphonse stated. "And Serena has a white rose."

"Exactly," Laila nodded. "Kay has a golden rose on her jacket and Lynn a silver lily in her hair."

"The flower seems to be big in these pictures," Mei said, mentioning towards another picture that showed Riza with a red rose in her hair. "It seems a common theme in the pictures."

* * *

"…so, why were you against using the train?" Edward asked as he sat down next to Winry before he hugged her tightly and kissed her lips softly.

"The seats are hard and I can't imagine that _my mother_ likes sitting in a train while her leg is broken," his fiancée said while she flashed Nerissa a faint smile.

"Oh, it's no problem for me," the older blonde said while flipping back her hair. "I have other reasons why I hate trains: usually, the trains I use always get robbed or have an accident. I seem attract problems – but on the bright side: I know everything about getting out of a burning train."

"Wonderful," Winry sighed. "So absolutely nothing will happen to us, right?"

"Hey, that sounds great," Edward said. "How was it to jump out of a burning train?"

"It's all … well … I blacked out and what I can remember is very blur but I'm pretty sure that it ruled," Nerissa shrugged before she tapped on her leg. "I hate breaking bones."

Winry smiled at her. "Things like that happen when someone is very brave," she said.

"Very dumb is far more fitting for me," Nerissa muttered.

"Let's speak about something else, yeah?" Winry wrapped her arm around Edward. "So, tell me, Nerissa, were you ever in love? I mean you're like … twenty-seven?"

"When I was sixteen, bored and had far too much time on my hands, yeah," the alchemist grinned.

"So, you weren't in the war, right? Because back then, the war was already on…"

"I was never a state alchemist, Winry," Nerissa said. "I guess the people already feared that Kimblee might snap – which he did – and they didn't want to double the risk of having an insane state alchemist on their hand. And so, since I stayed in the West where the war was more like a distant nightmare than a serious danger, I had enough time for my studies."

"And for having a boyfriend, right?" Winry clapped her hands. "We want all the details!"

Nerissa laughed softly as she pulled down her shirt to show the younger blonds the scar on her uninjured shoulder. "When we first met, we nearly killed each other," she said before she covered the scar again and rubbed her aching ribs. "He was … different from the other men I know."

"That looked like a wound inflicted by a bullet," Edward said with a glare. "And from what I know, there where soldiers in the Western Area too. So, was it a soldier?"

She nodded calmly. "It's the fate of women of my family to fall for soldiers," she said. "My father was a soldier and all my brothers-in-law too. Even innocent little Riza fell for one in the end…"

"And he shot you when you first met?" Winry asked, in complete and utter shock.

"He thought I was an enemy – and since I thought the same, I got him before he got me," she said. "He wore uniform when we met but my father's experiences taught me that you can't trust a uniform." She grinned widely. "But on the other hand: there is nothing more attractive than a man in a uniform."

* * *

Izumi's fist hit home as she run after the man who had tried to steal Abigail's handbag. But the man had tried to mess with the wrong housewives. While Izumi was getting back the bag by hunting the man, Abigail had disappeared for a second.

"What the hell, bitch?" the man asked as he tripped over his own feet.

"Na, na, I am sure that your mother never wanted you to use words like that," Chris said as she stopped next to her youngest sister. "Sweetheart, do you happen to have soap with you? We have to clean this poor man's mouth before it can rot…"

"Sisters, we are wasting time," Abigail said as she returned and picked up her bag. "And time is something we don't have a lot at the moment. Let's get rid of this problem and then we leave."

"You're the older one," Izumi sighed before she took a candy from Abigail's hand. "Let's go, sisters."

"Who … who the hell are you?" the man on the ground asked.

Abigail smirked widely before she nudged Izumi light.

The younger sister turned around with a wide grin. "I am just a passing housewife – and the woman who looks like she could have more money than hair, well, that's my dearest older sister," she said amused.

* * *

"What happened?" Roy asked as he entered the living room in the house where they had met and spotted Alphonse out cold on the couch. "Did he get attacked?"

"Something like that," Mei muttered. "This Serena-woman, well, she doesn't seem to want that someone gets in her room. We tried everything. Whenever we try to open the door, the person passes out. I first believed she used some poison that needs to get into contact with the skin but we even tried with gloves and Al still passed out. And opening the wall isn't an option either because we don't know the inside of the room, so we could destroy important evidence."

"There was a reason why Bradley wanted Serena for the secret service," Olivier muttered. "She always had her ways to create dangerous traps. She – um, where is Nick right now?"

"I just came back and wanted to inform you that I managed to open the door," the boy said. "It was no poison; it was the most brilliant construction I ever saw. She sealed the door in a certain way and that was the reason why Alphonse got knocked out. I found the way to switch it off. We can enter."

* * *

"…your pride could be a problem sooner or later, my girl," the red-haired man said slightly worried while he walked down the street next to the blond woman. "And should the seal break, you will get in trouble."

She chuckled. "They are already on my tracks," she said calmly. "I expect Lynn's son to figure it out. He has her intuition and his father's intelligence. It will be a walk in the park for him."

"And you don't run? You know that they will come after you and you don't run?"

"It would be futile by now."

"How so?"

"Considering that they started to search for me, they know that I am not dead. And I know them far too good to believe that they would give in when they wouldn't find me in Lionnenburg. They would go on and one day I would slip and they would find me. I spare both of us the problems. I let them catch me – but the rest of the game will be played by my rules." She raised her head and blue eyes burned brighter than fire. "You may say that I am too proud, boss, but you have to realise on thing: I am not longer a fragile little girl that needs to be protected. I grew up while I was gone. I grew and became stronger than before. They can't hold me down any longer, boss, and they need to accept it."

"Be careful with whatever you do, my girl," he said. "In the past, well, maybe you were able to beat them when they were weaker. But they grew, darling. They became stronger than before."

"Considering that most of them probably ran straight into my trap, I doubt that," she said. "I know that I am still weaker than them, physically, but my mind was always the best weapon I had. I know that I would lose tragically – should I ever be foolish enough to consider a direct fight. And I don't even want to fight against them. They are my friends. I would just defend myself should they attack first."

* * *

Roy reached Serena's old room first and entered with Helena on his arm. The room was neat and tidy, like it had to be expected, considering that it was the blonde's room. Her books stood in her shelves and the bed was made. The only thing that seemed terribly off was a familiar black velvet box on the desk. He hurried over, ignoring the footsteps on the stairs and opened the box, praying that he was wrong because if he wasn't, he would have to wonder about his old friend's innocent.

But, of course, he wasn't wrong.

The diamond on the ring sparkled even in the dim light and he unfolded the paper in the box. _' Roy – I know that you will find this … sooner or later, that's the only question. Kay gave this to me after your little (how do you want to call it?) stupidity. She stole it from Crimson, so don't wonder how she got to possess this. Consider it, please, as a last favour of an old friend. Best wishes – S.'_


	23. 97: Moving out

**Chapter 97: Moving out**

* * *

The silence wasn't perfect but that wasn't the reason why Roy had trouble to concentrate. It was the cold and absolute perfection around him that confused him more and more with every passing second. His wife was cleaning her favourite gun and like always, she didn't look down because she knew the gun like she knew her own body. Jade was repairing her favourite pair of fingerless gloves – the pair she just used when she wasn't on duty because Bradley's word still stung like a slap in her face. He had called her favourite gloves, the ones her brother had made for her, slutty and inacceptable. Winry was controlling Phil's and Edward's mechanical limbs. Olivier was checking her sword and her slim fingers danced across the cool steel. Bendix was loading his favourite gun with a dark expression on his face. Nerissa was sharpening her knives, her favourite weapons, with care and concentration and avoided the looks of everyone else as she stubbornly looked on the cold metal beneath her fingers.

Roy compared them with a perfect machine in a certain way. They all knew exactly what to do in order to achieve a maximum of efficiency. They armed themselves to protect the others.

"What's the meaning of this?" Laila asked sharply. The little girl wore her white nightgown with the yellow ribbon around her waist and had her arms crossed. Edward wanted to comment towards Nerissa that Laila looked at lot like the Water Alchemist but just when he was about to open the mouth, Winry tightened a lose screw on his leg and he yelped in pain.

"Serena is technically our ally but considering that she didn't trust us enough to ask for our help in the past, we decided that it would be smarter to be prepared for an attack from her," Riza said. "We know that she wouldn't attack us if she would see another way but you can't forget that she resembles a cornered animal, Laila, and we don't know how she will react when we appear in front of her."

"And a group of the best fighters of Amestris considers a single alchemist as a risk?" Nick asked, clad in his emerald pyjama and with narrowed eyes.

"Serena's speciality is undercover work," Roy said. "She hardly talks to people she doesn't trust – and that leaves around twelve people with which she would ever speak. And since she hardly speaks, people tend to forget that she was there. And furthermore: she had years to get into the possession of new skills, so she became even more dangerous than she used to be."

"And what keeps you from doing the smart thing? If one or two of us would go to talk with her, she had no reason to feel attacked," Victoria said as she also crossed her arms. "Honestly, if I was in her boots and suddenly a heavily armed group would appear on my doorstep, I would sure as hell attack. I believe it wouldn't even be for personal reasons – it would be because I felt attacked."

Olivier nodded. "If we were talking about a normal person, I would agree with you, Vic," she said, "but we aren't talking about a normal person. We are talking about the only one out of many high-skilled people who had the luck to survive an attack through the homunculi and tricking them into believing that she really died." She looked at Phil. "I know that you got away too, Phil, but for other reasons."

The black-haired man looked down at his automail, the one who had replaced the hand he had lost in his fight against Envy. By surviving and returning to battle (ah, the wonderful Mustang-spirit) he had saved his twin from a fate worse than death. As a state alchemist, Jade had been qualified as a Human Sacrifice along with all the others with a nice silver pocket watch, and someone in the rows of the homunculi had considered her as a good candidate – but in order to make it likely that she would break the taboo, someone close to her had to die … and the dice had decided that Phil should be the catalyst for Jade's Human Transmutation. But Phil, stubborn and proud as everyone in his family, had stayed alive. (Abigail once jokingly accused him of surviving just to annoy his opponents.)

"And Serena was the best spy Amestris ever had," Bendix added calmly. "And she got out of situations where everyone else would have died in a matter of seconds. She is definitively a brainiac."

Edward rolled his eyes. "And everyone knows that true geniuses are hard to predict, no matter how good you believe to know them," he said. "I mean, I never would have guessed that Sheska would date Fuery – even though they surely make an adorable couple."

Roy raised his head. "They are dating?" he asked.

Laila sighed. "Duh, daddy," she said. "Since your wedding they are going out and my sources say that Big Brother Kain was seen at a jeweller's store…"

"Spreading rumours can get you in trouble," Nick said as he raised his eyebrow.

"My source in this case is very reliable," the blonde replied while she stared at a certain redhead.

Roy also looked at Victoria and sighed. "Wait a second, why were you in town to see him buying a ring or something else?" he asked. "You hate to go shopping more than anything else."

"I had to get new shoes," his second-oldest daughter shrugged. "It was necessary."

"So, what did he buy?" Winry inquired.

"It looked like he was looking at the rings but I am not too sure," she shrugged.

Roy was suddenly reminded of the little black box in his pocket.

* * *

The red-haired man sighed deeply as he found the young blonde on the roof. She sat there with her arms around her legs and deep lost in her thoughts. "You should be asleep," he said.

She turned and a faint smile ghosted over her face. "I have too much on my mind," she said.

"You were always like that, just like Nerissa," he said. "You are the type of woman that thinks too much – I have a question for you: how do you get an elephant into a refrigerator?"

She raised one eyebrow. "Kill it, cut it apart and put the parts into the refrigerator."

"Wrong." He chuckled. "It's much easier and less bloody: open the door and put it into it."

She glared at him. "Technically, that's impossible."

"You are still over-analysing everything," he said. "It's not a matter of physics. It's a joke."

She glared at him over her shoulder. "Do I look like a person who likes to joke?" she asked.

He sighed deeply. "You used to be one," he said. "I accept that you suffered some losses in the past but you know as well as I know that this is how life goes – and no matter how much you seem to want it: you can't turn back time to undo all your mistakes. You need to learn and to move on."

* * *

"…Vicky, are you still awake?" Laila asked while she rolled over to lie on her side where her sister was supposed to sleep. For a second it seemed like Victoria was already asleep before the younger girl raised her head. "Yes?" she asked tiredly.

"What do you think about the idea to corner Serena with so many people at once?" Laila asked.

"The probability that someone will get hurt in progress is around ninety percent, so I cannot believe that this is a good idea," she said. "And I know that Aunty Liv doubts the plan too. I am not sure about Aunty Jade but she also looked like she wasn't totally convinced. The problem is that no one of the people who really care for Serena saw her since 1911, so how the hell are we supposed to know how she will react? I already get a headache when I think about all the wounds that will come to be soon."

"…I see it like you, Vicky," Nick said somewhere in the darkness, "but I already see a way out of this."

"Tell me," Laila said while she turned to look in the direction where his voice had come from.

"Well, we certainly have the money for the train ride to Lionnenburg and when I went for a walk with Aunty Jade earlier, I checked the times when the train to Lionnenburg leaves," he said. "The next train will leave in one hour and six minutes. The adults want to take the train in the morning…"

"…you didn't just suggest that we will take the earlier train, did you?" Laila asked.

"There is just one problem: we need an adult to play our guardian," Victoria said, already fire and flame for her brother's plan. "But I am sure that we could blackmail one of them…"

"I saw Edward leaving the house earlier," Laila said with a huff. She still hadn't forgiven Edward the destroyed dolls of her early childhood. "And even though he used to be a great fighter, he is no match for three of us."

"And I believe I have blackmail material on him…" the redhead mused. "Something about a messed up mission some years ago … it never found its way in his official file…"

"So, we just got our guardian," Nick grinned. "I always knew that your blackmail-data would be useful one day, Vicky." He sat up. "Let's get ready and kidnap Edward before we leave with the next train."

"I like the idea … but there stays one little problem," Laila said. "Vicky's personal bodyguard … I somehow doubt that Owen would like it if we leave him in the dirt while we go to solve a problem."

"He would never say anything!" Victoria exclaimed, momentarily forgetting that she had to stay silent.

"I think so too, but…" Laila licked her lips. "You said that he is a pupil of Abigail and Alain, right? Well, I believe we should use him as additional projection, should Edward fail which I somehow expect."

* * *

Catherina's blood left her face, leaving her paler than usual. Next to her, a dead person would have looked extremely healthy and well. Her emerald eyes widened until it hurt and she blinked slowly. Her breath hitched and she somehow knew that even if she could breathe, she would feel like suffocating. Her hands which were used to lead knives and swords with lethal precision trembled and her handbag dropped to the floor as she continued to stare at the redhead in front of her. He stood with the back to her but after admiring this man for so many years she knew his back as well as she knew his face.

"No…" she whispered. "That's … that's impossible."

And then, the big heroine of Creta did the unthinkable and fainted.

The man turned around and as he spotted the woman on the ground he sighed deeply. "I wanted to explain it to you, Cathy, but your timing is still worse than Nerissa's," he said as he picked her up and held her close for a moment. "And maybe, it's better this way because now you will believe me."

* * *

The children were in the train by now – but there had been minor complications: Edward had been arguing with Bea when they had found him and for the lack of a better plan, Laila had decided that they would take the Aerugian duchess as well. She called it 'family bonding' while the twins called it simply 'kidnapping'. Owen who had been dragged along as well had a hard time to hide it utter confusion and to keep his realisation that Laila was a little bit too bold to himself.

"By the way, what did Cai say as you called him?" Nick asked while he wrapped one of his arms around his sister who was freezing in the cold summer night.

"He calls Elicia and they will join us in Central," the blonde said smugly.

"You want to go against a state alchemist with no one who has a talent for offensive alchemy?" Bea asked while she rubbed her forehead as she felt the headache coming. "That will be funny, I guess."

"…and their parents will kill you and me when the kids get hurt," Edward muttered darkly.

"That's if Jade and Olivier don't get us first," the other major replied with a sigh.

* * *

Catherina awoke on a bed and had a wet cloth on her forehead. If she had tried to convince herself that what she had seen had be a dream, caused by her constant sleep deprivation of the last weeks when she had tried to figure out another part of an ancient alchemy manuscript, the smell in the room quickly convinced her that she hadn't been dreaming. It smelt like him. A strange mixture of wood, smoke and apples was in the air along with a hint of aftershave. She sighed as she slowly sat up and wrapped her arms around herself. He still used the same aftershave: Man of the forest.

* * *

Elicia awoke when someone knocked on her window and got up before she hurried over to open. Cai landed easily on his feet and straightened slightly as he looked at her. "I come with a message from Laila and the others," he said seriously. "They are heading to Lionnenburg and from what I understood, it's pretty important that everyone who looks innocent is there too. So, are you coming?"

She sighed deeply before she took out her favourite bag. "Laila owes me big time for this," she said while she quickly packed her bag and wrote a note for her parents. "I just check on Freddy and we will go through the front door. I don't care if you have door-phobia, Cai, that's getting ridiculous."

"I had to go through the door because Jun-Jun made sure that my windows don't open far enough for me to sneak out anymore," the prince said, "but she's out in town with Uncle Lei, so it's okay."

"You people are seriously messed up," Elicia sighed while she headed towards the door.

* * *

Jun Li suddenly froze and turned towards Lei. "Why the hell is Cai heading towards the train station?" she hissed while her pale eyes started to sparkle like a certain major.

Her fiancé smirked. "Why don't we try to find it out, darling?" he asked while he grabbed her hand.

She sighed deeply before she stopped and pressed her hands against her chest. "My sense to spot the chi of another person is back again!" she exclaimed in disbelief. "I never thought that I would get it back again … and now I can feel everything – it's even stronger than before!"

"Just another mystery, my little bird," he smiled before he hurried towards the train station.

* * *

While Nick hugged Elicia tightly, Laila glared at Cai while she had her arms crossed. "I said you should get Elicia – and not that you should get Elicia, Freddy, Jun Li and her fiancé!" she complained. "The more we are, the higher gets the risk that someone gets hurt … and when someone gets hurt, Vicky will throw a fit because she hates to be the one who does nothing but fixing up the injured."

"The thing is that first Freddy cried and we needed to take him with us before he would wake up the whole neighbourhood and just when we reached the train, Jun-Jun and Uncle Lei appeared. We had no other chance! We had to take them all with us!" Cai defended himself. "And don't forget that Jun-Jun and Uncle Lei both possess high alkahestry-skills, so they are very useful."

"Right now, they are knocked out," Nick stated over Elicia's shoulder. "What did you do to them?"

"Ah, Lan Fan showed me a trick," Cai shrugged. "I simply wanted to paralyse them and leave them behind on the platform but I took it a little bit too far and accidentally knocked them out … and it would have been wrong to leave them unconscious on a platform."

* * *

In the earlier hours of the morning, the woman known as Lily Blue sat on her favourite chair in the living room with her eyes closed. On the couch sat the red-haired man who looked down to the floor in an attempt to stay as silent as possible as she listened to the silence. Suddenly, she crossed her arms in the same way her eldest sister would have done it. "That's interesting," she said. "The steps are too light for normal adults – and especially for soldiers. Some of the steps are so light that's safe to assume that they are children, another one is heavier and I guess that there is someone with an automail-leg. Oh, and there is someone who moves like an adult, probably a woman who is pretty tall for her gender." Her eyes stayed closed for a moment. "And there are two patterns I can't recognise because they are way too light for adults and much too heavy for children … probably high-skilled fighters."

"Children?" the man raised an eyebrow. "Don't you feel, well, slightly insulted, _Serena_?"

She huffed and her golden hair slipped back once more. "Not really," she said. "I highly doubt that the kids are here because their parents' ordered them to. They came on there own accord. They probably came to talk with me … maybe to prevent something more dangerous. We let them in."

"That could be dangerous," he warned.

"Even if they came to attack me, I could deal with it."

"You would hate yourself for hurting kids."

"True."


	24. 98: Renaissance

**Chapter 98: Renaissance**

* * *

In spite of the fact that they had come with peaceful intentions, Laila's knees trembled a little bit as she knocked forcefully against the door before she grabbed Cai's hand to gain some support. Jun Li and Lei had stayed behind because Nick had come to the conclusion that the both high-skilled warriors from Xing could intimidate Serena – and like Bea had stated before: an intimidated Serena was a woman who would strike without thinking rationally. Bea had also stayed behind – but for completely different reasons. The major was a smart woman and she knew that her affiliations to the military could make Serena even more nervous and like she had learnt in the academy: a nervous woman was never predictable and she could snap.

"We don't need to do this," Edward tried one last time to escape the situation without a bruise.

Laila looked over her shoulder up at him as she smirked. "So, you are afraid, **Elric**?" she asked and looked more like her aunt Nerissa than usually – she even exactly hit Nerissa's calm soprano.

"I am not afraid, Laila. I am merely worried on your behalf," he said. "And your mother will murder me if you die while I am around. So I have no choice but reminding you that there still is a way out."

The blond girl looked at her brother who seemed serious and determinate as usually. "I respect your choice, Laila, but I believe that we have to go through with it," he said calmly while he gently patted her shoulder. "I know that you dislike this situation but … one day, we will be the ones to keep alive what our parents died for, Elric. My mother and my father bleed to death because they knew too much. Oh, and as far as I remember were you the one who dragged my mother into this mess."

Cai sighed deeply before he kicked both of them. "We can't argue now," he said. "Nick, I know that you miss your parents but they knew the risk and the decided that it was more important to allow you and your sister to lead a happy life. Parents do things like that. Like I said, they knew more than we know."

Victoria had stared at the door all the time and her breath went slowly. Owen put his hand on her shoulder and squeezed it reassuringly. She looked at him and a faint smile danced across her face before she straightened herself and looked at Elicia who carried her little brother, Frederic. "I hear someone coming," she said while she grabbed her brother's hand.

The door opened and the children stared at the young woman in the doorway. She was much taller than they had imagined her.  
Nick had thought that Serena looked more like his mother Lynn, always considering that they had been twin sisters  
Victoria had desperately hoped for a hint of red in her aunt's hair but it was just golden, exactly like Nerissa's.  
Laila had imagined the youngest sister curvier and more muscular but Serena seemed terribly fragile, just like Victoria.  
Cai who had seen some pictures of the younger Serena was shocked by the lack of her smile which had once been her most famous trademark.  
Elicia missed the gleam in the bright blue eyes which still resembled a cold winter day.  
Edward wondered how such a fragile woman could be the genius who had been able to seal a room permanently.  
Frederic, however, was not disappointed. He just extended his arms.

"I surely don't live up to your expectations and I am sorry for that," Serena said and her voice was wavering. Her body language betrayed her nervousness and Edward's disappointment grew with every passing second. How was it possible that such a … little girl was one of the best state alchemists who had ever had passed the exam? How could it be that a woman who looked more fragile than the always pale and delicate Victoria was a powerful alchemist?

"You certainly don't," he said rudely. "The adults are preparing their journey to your house better than a mission against the homunculi but I guess that I could beat you every day."

She looked at him while she placed Frederic on her hip. "I will take you up on this offer," she said as she bowed ironically. "I believe I don't even have to ask. Laila, Victoria, Nick, Elicia, Frederic – I guess, the actual student of Madame Mustang and a warrior from Xing – oh, and the infamous Fullmetal Alchemist who –according to what I heard – tends to underestimate other alchemists."

"The name is Cai Yao," the young prince said with a polite little bow. "It's great to meet you."

"Oh, a prince from the Yao-clan?" Serena asked while she stepped back to allow them into her house.

"Yes, Miss Hamilton," he replied while he dragged Laila into the house. "You heard from my family?"

"I occasionally have business with Xing and also with your clan, Cai," she said. "Tea or hot cocoa?"

"How did you know who my parents are?" Elicia asked while she held onto Nick's hand.

"Your father was … is one of my few friends," she said calmly. "Well, come in. There are discussions I don't want to have on my doorstep. You are, however, allowed to throw everything at me."

"You are up very early, considering that it's barely seven o'clock in the morning," Edward muttered.

"I am up since four," Serena replied before she let them into an elegant entrance hall and tilted her head backwards before she raised her voice for the first time. "Boss, the guests are here!" she yelled.

* * *

Riza froze as she entered the children's room and gasped as she spotted the empty beds. She closed her eyes for a moment trying to convince herself that she was having a nightmare but when she opened her eyes again, she spotted the white piece of paper on the desk.

_We are so sorry, mommy, but we simply can't allow you to make such a mistake. But you wouldn't listen to kids, so we had to take the matter into our own hands and travel to Lionnenburg. We left with the eleven-o'clock-train in the night._  
And took Edward as a hostage, so no funny business, yes?  
**Nick!  
**_Well, yes, like Nick said: we have Edward, so tell Aunty Nessa and Winry that we don't want them to worry about him. They will get him back once he finished his job, so they don't have to worry about their little brother/fiancé at all.  
_**Are you really sure about this, Laila?  
**_Oh, shut up, Vicky!  
_And we also kidnapped Owen, so tell Aunty Abbs that her old student didn't run off or something.  
_Lots of love, Laila_,  
**Victoria  
**and Nick!

The thing Riza realised first was that she wasn't even surprised or angry. She just felt like a certain weight had been lifted from her shoulders – and to tell the truth, she had expected that the children wouldn't let the adults go through with it. They had been raised to take responsibility and to make decisions even when they were uncomfortable. And somehow, she was proud of them even though that didn't keep her from worrying about her children.

"They are gone?" Nerissa asked.

Riza didn't flinch. Usually, even she wouldn't have known that the older woman was close by because Nerissa moved silent as a falling snowflake and since she never meant true danger for Riza as long as she had no reason to be angry with someone, Riza's sharp senses didn't warn her like they would have done it if a homunculus would come up behind her. But since Nerissa had to use crutches and hated it with passion so she cursed regularly, Riza always knew when the other blonde was coming. "Yeah," she said while she handed over the letter. "I can't say that this surprised me."

"I am also not surprised at all," Nerissa said. "And considering that they dragged Elric along … I really admire the cold perfection your daughters show when it comes to perform a flawless revenge."

Riza nodded while she put the letter into her pocket. "Well, to quote your father: 'You may be young but that isn't an excuse for being irresponsible and foolish. If you don't want people to decide for you, go on and decide for yourself!'" she said in an exaggerated strict voice.

"Aww, bless darling daddy," Nerissa chuckled while she turned around to face Phil. "What's up, Breezy?" she asked with a faint smirk.

"Bea never returned from her walk," the air alchemist exclaimed before he glared at the tall woman next to him. "And I can't remember giving you the permission to call me that."

"Maybe she eloped with Edward," Riza smirked. "She seems to have a thing for automails…"

Nerissa gasped in mock shock. "Riza, I believe this the first time in a long time that you joked…"

"The first in a long time that you saw her joking, maybe," Phil smirking, hearing his cousin coming closer and closer with every passing second, "but her best joke so far is still that she married Roy."

"Phil…" Roy growled as he lightly smacked his cousin. They had grown up like brothers and even though Roy had been always closer to Jade, the both males still had a good and stable friendship that allowed them to joke around without hurting each other too badly.

* * *

Edward felt the eyes of the red-haired man on his back as he sat on the table. He suddenly felt a certain danger surrounding him and the uncomfortable feeling he had had around Serena from the very beginning became stronger as she spoke with the man she called 'boss'. The children were too tired to notice the tension in the air and from their places around the table they couldn't even see the man.

"…I see that you became faster, Serena," the man said quietly while a knife hit a board again and again.

"Ironic, isn't it?" she asked. "I excel in a field where I need more concentration and endurance than speed but at the same time, I get faster with every passing month."

"Your recovery is certainly progressing," he said and Edward who had spent some months in Creta recognised the faint accent of Lutetia, the Cretan Capital. "I _told_ you that you would recover, Rena."

"Miss Hawkeye," Edward said. "You got your qualification for your Water Alchemy but in later files it is stated that you dislike this kind of alchemy … so what do you use these days?"

"It's difficult to explain and I would be really foolish if I would share all my secrets with you, Fullmetal," she said. "I say just this much: I excel in defence."

"A good defence often saves your neck," the man added chuckling.

"My trainer would certainly agree," Cai stated smoothly while he remembered all the bruises he had gotten from Jun Li because of his lacking defence. "She is quite an intimidating woman."

"Well, I worked in Briggs, so defence is a part of my philosophy," Serena said while she caught a knife thrown at her with ease. "So, what exactly do you want from me?"

Edward put down his mug with a lot of force. "An explication why you left your post and faked your own death!" he shouted. "I mean … it's the duty of a state alchemist to stay on his or her feet to the end and as long as you weren't injured after the attack, you have no excuse for hiding!"

Serena stepped into the room and while she walked over to him, she bound her long hair to a tight bun that left no hair on her neck and back to cover it. She inhaled deeply before she turned her back to her guests and took off her black pullover. The straps of her brassiere hid just a small part of the huge scar that marred her complete back along with a long line of alchemistic symbols that ran from her right shoulder to the waistband of her skirt. "Does this answer why I hid?" she asked while she got into her pullover again and turned around to face him. "I was lucky and I know it. If the bear had gotten me a little bit harder and if the claws had destroyed more of my back, I would be in a wheelchair now."

Victoria looked at her in sympathy before she stood up and crossed the room with few but powerful steps before she stopped in front of her aunt and hugged her tightly. "I understand," she said calmly.

Serena looked down and for a moment, Edward was reminded of the day when Izumi had forgiven him for the Human Transmutation and for becoming a state alchemist. "The one with the sharpest ears wouldn't hear the bear coming for her?" he asked while he came to the conclusion that the blood in the snow had been probably really Serena's.

"Sadly," she said while she tried to smile a little bit. "I could say that my ears were covered and it would be the truth but that's no excuse for my failure."

"That means … with such an injury, getting away would have been nearly impossible all on your own," Laila stated. "So, someone helped you to survive, right? Such an injury would have killed you in a matter of minutes."

"I passed out for a moment from the pain, so my heartbeat slowed down. I would have lasted maybe fifteen minutes, but afterwards I would have become a part of the Briggs, yes," Serena said. "But my luck didn't leave me when I was bleeding to death in the snow. I had often more luck than brain."

"But who was able to get you out of an area like Briggs where we have guards everywhere to prevent spies from Drachma?" Edward asked. "I know how it is up there…"

"I was assigned to Briggs since 1911, so I knew the mountains like the back of my hand," she said. "And I was found by someone I could trust. And he knows the Briggs even better than I do."

The red-haired man finally stepped into the room and Elicia, Laila, Nick and Victoria gasped.

* * *

Roy stared at Nerissa who sat on the opposite seat in the train while he frowned as he spotted on of her knives on her belt. "I believe you are the only one who prefers knifes over other weapons," he said.

"Traditional Cretan weaponry," she said while she looked up from her book. "Everything I know about fighting and strategy is traditional Cretan – and it's really successful in this country so far."

"As long as you don't get a psycho," Jade sighed, rubbing her bruised rips for a second.

"Oh, speaking of mentally limited people…" the blonde turned towards Breeze Soul. "I know that we don't always get along that well, Mustang, but I know that you like Elric even less and for running away with the kids, he needs a proper beating and I wondered if you would spar with him."

Jade grinned widely, utterly pleased with this suggestion. "You just got more points, Nerissa," she said as she clapped her hands. "Yes, I am with you in this case. Oh, and you have the spirit daddy is talking about all the time, so maybe you should consider joining our family. I am sure that we have still some cousin of eight degree who would gladly marry you."

* * *

Catherina sat on the bed and had her legs crossed as she stared at the wall while she tried to calm herself down a little bit. As Duchess and mayor of Artagan, a little town in Creta, she had been trained to stay calm no matter how much she wanted to freak out. Her breath went slowly and she closed her eyes for a moment as she analysed her situation. She wasn't – for once – a prisoner and from what she had seen from the window, she was in one of the best mansions of Lionnenburg.

"…you are awake," a calm, familiar voice said and she slowly turned around as she opened her eyes to face the only man she had ever loved. He stood in the door and looked down. "I am sorry," he said.

"I know you are," she said as she got up and straightened her dress before she forced another brilliant smile on her face. "You know, you could never lie to me."

"You are making it sound like you could trick me," he said as he held out his hand. "Can I at least apologise properly, Cathy? I am sorry for letting you believe that I went missing and died in the Briggs. I apologise for putting my goals above yours when we were engaged – and I'm sorry for hurting you."

Her forced smile cracked and became a genuine one. "Apology accepted, Peter," she said before she hugged him tightly, "but the next time you fake your death, give me a call or something. I cried for weeks when I heard that you went missing."

"Hey, going missing has tradition in my family!" he tried to defend himself before his green eyes narrowed and he pushed up the sleeve of her jacket. Deep scars were carefully wrapped around her wrist and he looked up to her face before he gently kissed the scars. "I am so, so sorry," he whispered. He should have known what his decision would do to her. She had promised to love him forever – even after their break-up and he should have known that she would stay true to her word because she was Catherina D'Artagan and Catherina D'Artagan would rather die than break a promise she had made.

He knew her better than he knew anyone else. Maybe that was to be expected, seeing that he knew her since they had been five and nine. She was – in his eyes – like the sky in April. (He could have chosen every month in spring but he always said April because she had been born in April.) Her green eyes carried the sunlight in them. She was even after so many years still a child of light and next to her, even the brightest stars would pale in comparison. Her heart was always aflame and this fire drove her further and further against anyone who tried to step into her way. It was, however, always ridiculous to try to keep Catherina D'Artagan from her goals. Like the brightest day would melt the snow away, so could she always break through any ice around a person – like she had done it when they had been kids and he had been a terrible little boy.

She looked at him, trying to figure him out but his eyes were still like the frozen sky above Lutetia in late fall. In his eyes, she saw the dark clouds and the endless storms that troubled his heart as long as she knew him. He had always reminded him of the cold and lonely moon in an October night without any stars. His eyes always betrayed him, it was sometimes ridiculous that he still tried to hide his true feelings from her. His eyes were amazing because even though he was of Cretan origin, just like she, he had the most amazing blue rays in his emerald orbs. He was a child of fall, meant to end the spring – but she had never cared about this because in a certain way, they kept destroying each other for more than twenty years by now. But they were like addicts and even though they were always separated in a certain way, they were always united in another way.

Catherina's reasons were always related to love in the one or another sense.

Peter's reasons were usually connected to hate and revenge because as much as he tried to defeat his inner demons, he kept falling down.

She had been his reason to get up. She had been his sun for years, the light in his dark days. To lose her had nearly killed him but he had realised that it had been his own fault in a way. They had been always different and their love – albeit strong and fateful in some way – had always had been like a fatal injury or a strong poison from the very beginning.

They had never been soft. They had been weapons, sharp and rough around the edges. They had meant to be, maybe, but that had never allowed getting that far in their relationship. Catherina had stopped it before she could get too involved and lose her usual control.

* * *

"…so, let me get this clear," Laila said while she paced around in the living room, just like Roy would do it. "That Raven-lookalike shot you back in 1914 but the bullet didn't get through your clothes, right? And because you were probably distracted after being shot, you were attacked by a bear and because of your injuries; you had to go undercover in order to stay alive, right?"

Serena nodded slowly while she let down her hair again. "Exact," she said. "I originally planned on returning to Briggs when I heard that the old generals were gone but before I could make up my mind, I heard that Hakon had died and … and I needed time to deal with this."

"Hakon?" Edward asked while he raised his eyebrow.

"Captain Buccaneer," the Mermaid Alchemist said collected but Laila saw the nervous flicker in her eyes. "We were a couple and … it's tragic that he died this young. The world needs men like him."

"I am sorry for your loss, Miss Hamilton," Edward said. "He was a great man and very … um … strong."

She lowered her head as she nodded. "I know," she whispered. "He was wonderful, so romantic…"

"And you are obviously still mourning his death," Nick said as he wrapped one arm around Elicia.

"Of course," she said. "It has been just three years that he died and … and I still miss him."

"He died like a hero is supposed to die," Jun Li who sat on a couch threw in.

Lei nodded while he glared at his nephew. "From what I heard, the captain died _heroically_."

"And that's how I intend to die one day," Jun Li smiled. "To die while I protect someone I love … that would be the greatest honour for me, I guess."


	25. 99: Reunited

**Chapter 99: Reunited**

* * *

Catherina's eyes were trained on Peter's equally green ones as she inhaled deeply. "I know you far too long to ask you why you left because I know that you won't answer me, so I will take a guess, Peter. I guess you left your family because it became too dangerous and seeing that you even stayed away from me even though I proved more than capable of taking care of myself, your opponent has to be very powerful and probably very influential…" She raised her hand to cup the left side of his face where her thumb brushed over the scar on his cheek. "…like the Cretan Secret Service, right?"

He stared at her like he had never seen her before. "You are acting like this is nothing," he said. "But you of all people should know how these … people are. They would kill me as soon as they get to know that I am still alive, Cathy. And if they know that you have contact to me…"

She chuckled darkly. "I had more than enough trouble with them," she said while she rested her forehead against his. "And as you can see: I always got out alive, Peter. But I don't know what I would do if you would decide to play the hero again. I am sick of sacrificing my happiness over and over again. I love you, no matter how foolish this may sound, and I would hate to lose you, old friend."

His hands rested on her shoulders as he sighed. "You know how much I love you, Cathy," he said. "I always loved you enough to let go of you because I always knew that they would come for you…"

"They are coming for me because they still believe that I would be able to develop the drug they want," she shrugged. "I told them more than once that it is nearly impossible to create something like that but they keep telling me that I have no idea what I am talking about and that I don't try hard enough."

"Well, obviously they forget that you are one of the most brilliant scientists that I happen to know…"

"The Secret Service always hired the cruellest and dumbest idiots Creta has," she huffed.

"And they tried to hire you, my dear lady, even though they should have known…"

* * *

Roy didn't wait for anyone inside the house to open the door. No matter how many people had told him that his recklessness would be his death one day, he opened the door with a kick. Izumi looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "A little bit impatient, huh?" she smirked.

Serena who stood in the entrance hall sighed deeply as she glared at the black-haired man who stumbled into her house. "So, I hope you will pay for the door," she said calmly.

He rolled his eyes. "I haven't seen you in six years and the first thing you tell me is that I have to pay for the door I kicked in because I was so impatient to see one of the few sane friends of mine again?"

"Serena…" Riza growled as she moved forward while she glared at her cousin. "I believe you owe me and Nerissa an explication for faking your own death – oh, and I believe that Liv would like to know the reason behind your disappearance too."

The youngest out of once five, now three sighed deeply as she nervously toyed with the hem of her shirt. She was still shy even though she had fewer problems to speak with other people now. Still, the fact that there were so many people she didn't know bothered her greatly and let the words she wanted to speak die in her throat. She opened her mouth again but she stayed silent.

Nerissa looked at her little sister with eyes full of sympathy. _'Maybe Bradley should have made her the Crimson Alchemist,'_ she thought. _'Whenever she blushes, she is scarlet in her face.'_

"A back injury, right?" Mei inquired as her dark eyes narrowed. "I can see it in the way you move."

Nerissa limped forward and wrapped her uninjured arm around her while she hugged the younger blonde tightly. "You fool," she whispered while her hand rubbed over Serena's marred back and even though the scar was covered, Nerissa's sensitive fingertips could feel it and a pair of blue eyes widened considerably. "What in Truth's name happened to you, Rena?" she asked quietly. "It feels … terrible."

"Bear," Serena whispered while she wrapped her arms around Nerissa and enjoyed the fact that she had still one sister who cared about her. "I didn't hear it because I was … freaking out."

Roy's eyebrows rose while he tried to calm Helena down. "I would have never expected that you would not hear something as huge as a bear," he said. "And I also never expected that you would admit that you freaked out upon something."

She glared at him before her old smile returned once more to her face. "I would like to see you being all relaxed when you are shot by someone you believe to be a superior," she said. "And furthermore, I was sick and my headache was killing me anyway."

Nerissa's hand on her shoulder tensed and she closed her equally blue eyes. "Poor princess," she said before she let go of her sister. "Well, I really hate to kill the atmosphere but do you have a chair for me, Serena? Oh, and another painkiller would be nice too. My shoulder is killing me lately."

"We told you to stay behind to rest," Izumi said sharply. "In less than half a year you took one knife, some icicles and at least twenty punches to this shoulder and I am not surprised that it never healed properly with all the things you do despite knowing better."

"Recklessness considering heavy injuries runs in our family, I believe."

Maybe it was the shock on Nerissa's face that gave it away – or maybe it was the deep frown that suddenly appeared on Riza's face. The blonde had stayed in the background so far to evaluate the situation properly and even though she had noticed the tension in Serena's shoulders and the strangely familiar smell in the air, she hadn't expected this and for a second she wondered – totally irrational – if Serena had been able to do the impossible and perform a perfect Human Transmutation because the man who walked down the stairs like he owned the place (which he probably did) was no one else than the state alchemist who had died in Winter 1897 during a mission – her uncle Peter Hamilton, her father's best friend and colleague.

He hadn't changed much over the years. His once perfectly red hair, brighter than any flame and unmatched by any other redhead besides probably Professor D'Artagan, showed lines of grey but age had been kindly with him and the wrinkles on his face were the result of many times when he had laughed and enjoyed being alive. He wore, of course, a green jacket with golden buttons – just like Kay would have done it during undercover missions to prove her pride of being part-Cretan and ticking Bradley or whoever had given the orders at the same time.

"Uncle Peter…" Riza whispered, wondering if fate had taken another twist if Kay had known that her beloved father, her hero had been still alive by the time she had ran away to find her happiness.

"Ah, Riza," he said with a smile. "It has been a while since I saw you. You grew up, little sunshine."

Betrayal crossed Nerissa's flawless facial features and she turned away to hide her face. "Father."

"Ah, sweetie," Peter smiled. "I heard you gave Cathy quite a hard time in your teenage years."

She looked at her shoes which where suddenly very interesting. "Maybe, yeah," she said.

"Stubbornness was always one of your most amazing traits, Nessa," he said. "Make sure that you make a full recovery soon, so you can spar with me. I am sure that you have something to say to me."

"The times I had no other way to express myself than my fists are over," she said.

"I thought you listed me as the person you always wanted to fight against," he shrugged, "but if you don't want to, well, who am I to force you into sparring with me? Oh, I just wondered if you are trying to act mature or if you have really no interest into taking out your rage on someone you can take it."

"You still believe that you are the best, huh?" she huffed in annoyance. "I will beat you this time."

"I look forward to our fight," he said. "Oh, if you want to sit down, Nessa, I am sure that we have a chair for you in the living room." He walked over to her and held out his hand. "I am sorry, darling, I really am but I had my reasons … and as much as I want to share them with you, I can't."

* * *

Riza held Serena's hand as they sat in the younger woman's study. Roy paced around in the background, waiting for the right moment to shake Serena out off her semi-trance. Nerissa had fallen asleep due to the painkiller her father had given her and the others were waiting, more or less patient.

"I am so sorry," Serena whispered while she wrapped her arms around her legs. She looked like a child that knew that it would get trouble for doing something wrong. "I never wanted to hurt you…"

Riza squeezed her hand and smiled softly. "I know," she said gently. "You were never the type for hurting the people you care for and furthermore: hey, it's okay. All of us made mistakes over the years and I am sure that even Kay and Lynn would forgive you if they were … well … still alive."

Roy stopped for a second and crossed the room to hug Serena tightly before he ruffled her usually perfect golden hairdo. "You still worry too much," he said grinning. "You will get wrinkles if you keep that but and furthermore, I happened to figure out why you disappeared that suddenly!"

She rubbed her temples as she sighed deeply. "Oh dear, that will be interesting to hear," she said.

"You disappeared because you wanted to avoid babysitter-duty and since I got behind your evil plan, you will keep an eye on Helena and Rachel now while Riza and I go on a date!" he told her seriously.

She rolled her eyes. "You know, Roy, if you want me to do something for me: just ask me the next time. I have far too many problems at the moment to voluntarily enter an argument with you," she said, "so I would probably give in to nearly everything at the moment."

He patted her head before he sighed deeply. "I am … um … sorry about Hakon's death," he said softly.

"It was my fault, not yours," she said. "Probably he didn't fight that hard because he missed me, I will never know. I just owe him an explication when we meet again."

* * *

Maes Hughes was usually very relaxed but not today. His firstborn child, his perfect little Elicia, had not only run away, no, she had also kidnapped her younger brother, so it was his fatherly duty to retrieve his rebellious seven-year-old and the poor one-year-old victim of kidnapping. He didn't check the name on the plate on the door as he barged into the house because if he had done so, well, maybe he would have been surprised by the image on the stairs.

A plain back pullover and an equally dark skirt, golden hair with red ribbons in it – there was no doubt about the woman's identity but still, Maes gasped in horror as he saw her because she was – no matter how much he wished for the contrary – supposed to be six feet under right now … and not alive and carrying his poor, kidnapped son down the stairs.

Serena was equally shocked but she managed not to drop Frederic as she looked at her old friend. Since the entrance hall was empty and no one she was afraid of was around, the corners of her mouth moved up as she smirked. "You know, Maes, you are catching flies," she said innocently as she laughed.

Gracia who hadn't been that fast looked confused from the blonde to her husband who was frozen. She shrugged and bit her lower lip. "I believe you have my son," she stated calmly.

"I agree with you, Mrs Hughes," Serena replied as she handed back the little boy, "but your daughter asked me to keep an eye on him. It seems like Frederic can be quite mischievous – especially with Roy's twins from what I heard."


	26. 100: Secrets

**Chapter 100: Secrets**

* * *

Silence.

Usually, Serena adored silence but this time, it felt strange and uncomfortable as she looked at him. A small part of her shattered heart healed as she lowered her gaze. She had missed him terribly and all of this came back to her with all might. She had loved him – not the way she had loved Hakon – and she wanted to hug him but she couldn't move. She knew how much she had hurt him when she had disappeared but at the time, it had been her only real option – other than death. To run away had meant to survive and she had needed to think about herself first. She had had to stay alive at any cost – so that she could return to her friends now.

"Mermaid," Phil said softly. "Long time no see, Lieutenant."

The tension left her body as she heard how the intimidating perfection of the silence was shattered. "Breeze Soul," she replied. "Yes, it has been too long, Captain."

He chuckled softly but his eyes stayed serious. "I really missed you," he said. "What's life without the Princess of Eternal Winter, some might ask. Tsk, you never estimated yourself properly."

She shook inside. It was a terrible feeling. She trembled as the small bird inside her chest tried to escape and once more, she felt exactly like this bird.

"Foolish, sweet little girl," he smiled as he held out his hand. "Ah, c'mon, Rena. Smile and keep walking because it's all you can do anyway."

"That's why I missed you," she replied. "You hardly changed. You got older, true, and maybe a little bit gruff … but you are still blunt and straight to the point."

"Did you really expect me to change after you were gone?" he inquired.

She shook her head as their hands entwined once more. "Sometimes, I wished that you would change for the sake of the people who actually deserve to love you but I know you too well to believe that you would ever change, Phil," she said. "And it's strangely comforting that you are still the same old fool you were a few years ago."

"I love you too," he sighed.

* * *

"You know, it is nice that we can go out without worrying for our children," Riza said as she looked up from her meal. "And if one of the others is dumb enough to tick Serena off, well, we know what will happen. I hope you warned Izumi and Edward from saying anything stupid while Serena is present."

"It has been a while since I had the pleasure of hearing Serena's voice loud and clearly…" Roy smirked before he looked at her. "Maybe I will annoy her a little bit once we return. I feel like she has a lot in her system that needs to get out of her before it can cause permanent damage."

"And you really want to take her anger? You remember what happened the last time when she got mad at you? For a moment, Jean and I thought that she had killed you with her last attack…"

"That was a normal evaluation for state alchemists and I underestimated her a little bit, I admit it."

"You totally underestimated her. You thought that she was just running in circles for fun while she was preparing that huge array!" his wife sighed. "And I wasn't even talking about that incident."

"Oh, so you meant the Never-annoy-Serena-by-ruining-her-first-date-with-a-potential-husband-just-because-you-fear-that-he-could-be-a-rapist-incident?" he asked sheepishly.

"Exactly," she said while she patted his hand. "But don't worry: usually, Serena can control herself."

* * *

Serena was tired as she sat on her favourite chair and faced Maes who stared at her like he had never seen her before. Her fingertips touched each other in order to keep her calm and her eyes were trained on the black-haired man who sat on the second chair in her study. "If you want to yell at me, well, do it now," she said and her pale face was once more a perfect, stoic mask.

He wondered how she could deal with everything. She had lost a good deal of her family and her lover. Her back was marred forever (according to Roy, Maes hadn't asked Serena about this injury yet) and according to Roy's very scary aunt Izumi, Serena's formerly smooth movements had suffered too. So he just held out his hand and squeezed hers. "I believe I understand," he told her. "Don't worry, Serena, if you want to, I'll have you back in all the files before the day is over – and I am sure that you could be a state alchemist once again if you speak about this with Roy or Jade."

"You are taking this a little bit too lightly, Hughes," she scolded while she freed her golden hair from the bun she usually had on the left side of her head. "I am considering returning to duty at the moment but no matter what my choice will be, I will never return to Briggs."

He looked at her and behind the few strands that had always hidden small parts of her face, he saw the most burning determination he had ever witnessed in her eyes. "You used to love the snow," he stated.

She lowered her head and stretched her arms. "And you used to like parks, Maes," she said while she looked at him with a faint smile on her lips. "Tell me, do you still like them?"

He shook his head while he played around with one of his knives. "You know, I am worried," he said as he looked at her. "Elicia is so close to Laila, Nick and Victoria … oh, and Cai. It makes me nervous."

She chuckled while she snatched away the knife. "These kids saw more than I would have liked them to see," she said, seriously and with every ounce of her being class president, best cadet of her year and generally responsible. "I know that you dislike the relationship between Elicia and Nick because you didn't change the slightest bit since you were that overprotective-"

"I don't intend to insult you, Serena, but these guys had surely ulterior motives when they asked you out!" he quickly defended himself. "And I was under strict orders to protect your innocence!"

She sighed deeply as she toyed around with the knife. She knew how well he could handle them because they had been blackmailed once by Lynn to present some insane tricks for a talent show. She had never liked knives but on the other hand had she never liked any kind of weapon that was used to kill in first place. She would shoot decently and her aim was good but she hated the noise a gun caused. Serena preferred silence over most things and since she could move at least as quietly as any assassin from Xing, she had been usually used as a spy in the past.

"I feel still insulted that Kay considered it as necessary," she said softly, throwing the knife into the air before catching it effortlessly. "But since I know how it feels when you are being overprotective about someone, I can relate to Elicia's feelings. Hey, they are just children. And weren't you the one who swore that he would never become an overprotective father like Uncle Berthold?"

He looked at her and he wondered if she had always been such a strong and stubborn woman. But on the other hand, she had stood on the edge. She had seen the end of everything but she had fought. She had left before she had been lost. Nothing had been able to hold her down, once she had made her decision – and as far as he could remember, she had always been this way. She had moved forward, ready to attack whoever dared to step between her and her goal. People who really believed that it was easy to defeat her, easy to beat her in a game that had been hers from the first second were wrong, oh so wrong. It was impossible to catch Serena when she wanted to be free. The fact that she had been able to avoid any suspicion that she could be still alive for the last three years proved that much.

"You are … probably right once more," he told her, hesitatingly. "And I apologise for any discomfort I may have caused you when you were a teenager. I just tell you that much, Serena: You always were a pretty girl and Kay wasn't the only one who was worried that you might attract a weirdo – or two. The person who blackmailed me, Martin and Charles into shadowing you and making sure that you were fine was Roy and he did so because his cousin, Jade, you know? Well, she got herself a stalker when she was around your age and because Jade is as fragile and delicate as you, he decided that you could attract the same category of lunatics and that we had to protect you from this."

She started to chuckle before she froze. "Wait a second, Jade was the hand-to-hand-combat-specialist of the Western Headquarters when I was still in the army, right?" she asked while she finally put down the knife, something what calmed Maes considerably. "So … you aren't insulting me right now, yes?"

"Serena, can you name three people who got away with insulting you because they weren't stabbed by knives or icicles?" he asked. "Oh, and who didn't get a surprising heart attack that killed them…"

"You make Lynn and Kay sound like two lunatics," Serena said.

"Well, they **were** lunatics," Maes shrugged while he looked at her. "How is the babysitting going so far? Do you need … um … help while dealing with the children?"

She laughed softly. "First of all: I dealt with soldiers up at Briggs before," she said, "and secondly: some of the others started to scold the kids for running away. The last thing I saw was that Gracia was really angry with your daughter and that Breeze Soul was challenging Fullmetal, so I am sure that the others are watching their fight. I think it's boring because Soul will kill him if he isn't careful enough."

Maes sighed deeply as he looked out the window. "If Edward still believes that it is wise to mess with Jade, he is denser than I originally thought. I mean, it was terrible to watch how he never had the nerve to ask his childhood sweetheart out but that he is dumb enough to accept Jade's challenge…"

* * *

Peter stopped in the doorway before Catherina pushed him forwards with a glare on her face. He turned around and looked desperately at her. "I can't do this!" he whispered.

She glared at him before she pushed him into the room. "Peter, act your age – for once at least!" she ordered while she crossed her arms. She wore, like usually, a green pullover and jeans.

"Cathy, I know that you are mad at me for what I did, no matter how much you try to claim the opposite, but you I really have to do this? She will kill me!" he said.

She rolled her eyes. "Don't make me get really mad at you," she said before she closed the door behind him. "Oh, and I will seal the door. Serena was nice enough to borrow me her manuscript lately."

"I hate you, Cathy, I really do," he muttered.

"Oh, you keep saying that and still, you usually accept sooner or later that I am right."

He glared at the door but as it glowed for a second, he knew that she had used one of Serena's sealing techniques and he didn't want to faint from touching it. He sighed deeply and turned around to face the bed where Nerissa slept – and as he saw the frown on her forehead, he wondered if it was really so late that she had been destroyed beyond repair. He sat down on the bed and stroked her forehead with his thumb, smoothing the frown. "Nessa, we need to talk," he said softly.

Blue eyes opened slowly and she stared up at him before she tried to sit up, hissing in pain once more. "Yes, I agree," she said, strangely stiffly and distanced.

"Nessa…" he took her hand and kissed her knuckles before he looked up. "I am sorry, I really am … but if I had stayed, I would have endangered all of you – especially Serena."

It was, technically, unfair because Peter knew how much his firstborn daughter cared about her youngest sister and when Nerissa gritted her pearly teeth, he had to bit back a smirk.

"May I guess?" she asked, still strangely distanced, as if she was holding something back.

"Who am I to stop you from using your brain?" he asked with a sigh.

"Good question," she smiled before she tapped her chin. "Well, my best guess would be the Cretan Secret Service because I had a little bit of trouble with them too," she said.

His eyes widened. "They were targeting you, Nessa?" he growled.

She nodded. "The killers they sent after me were easy to put asleep," she said, flexing her uninjured arm. "Afterwards, I disappeared from the face of the world and they never bothered me again."

"You are taking this a little bit too lightly for my taste," her father said.

"Well, maybe I would take it more seriously if I hadn't seen how Catherina defeated a killer squad in less than three minutes," she shrugged. "I know that the Cretan Secret Service has the reputation of being the best around but what makes them so good if they lose a whole squad against one woman who gets out of the fight without a scratch?"

He got up and crossed over to the window before he sighed. "If they attacked you and sent a killer after Serena, well, I believe things are far more serious than I hoped them to be, Nessa," he said calmly while his fingers tapped against the cool glass. He slowly turned around before he walked back to her. "This may be awkward for you but please remove every layer you wear over your injured shoulder," he said. "I heard from Fullmetal that your wound always reopens when you move too fast or when you get under too much pressure. Serena suggested stitches."

She paled immediately. "Hell, no!" she exclaimed. "Don't do this to me, father!"

He sighed deeply before he handed her a single pill and a glass of water. "You are worrying your sister, Nessa," he said. "And you are also worrying me and Miss Rockbell, so would you please take the pill?"

She glared at him before she grabbed the white pill and the glass and removed her white blouse and the bandages around her shoulder. "I hate you," she whispered.

"I love you too, daughter mine," he smirked.

She glared even harder as she showed her shoulder with the deep gash. "You know that I'll have your heads for this once I wake up, right?" she muttered.

He smiled at her while he waited for Catherina to return. "You got far more mature, Nessa."

She chuckled softly. "They call it growing up, father," she said. "You should try it too."

* * *

"…ah, c'mon, Mustang," Edward said while he looked at Jade. They had spent the last hour with circling around each other, searching the weak point in the other's defence. "Deliver the first punch, will you?"

She glared at him, never ceasing in her smooth movements, as she moved a little bit closer. "I would be a complete moron if I would attack you that way," she said while she cold night air hurt her hands. She was too used to her gloves, she decided, but since they wanted to settle the issue without alchemy or any related arts, she had left her gloves off to avoid temptation.

"Jade Mustang, I never took you for a coward!" Edward taunted.

She smirked at him. "But you obviously take me for a fool right?"

Alain who was watching the fight (or better: the lack of thereof) from the sidelines and turned to look at Claudio who was also present. "Jade is really special for a Mustang," he said. "She does her work and never runs into a battle without knowing every detail." He grinned widely. "She takes after me in that aspect – oh, and should you ever be dumb enough to hurt her, I will have your head."

"It wouldn't be wise for an amestrian businessman who does a lot business with Aerugo to kill the Aerugian prince, you know?" Claudio smirked while he watched his girlfriend.

"Oh, believe me, I developed many techniques to kill someone without leaving any traces," Alain said.

"That makes it clear where Jade got her absolute control about herself," the prince said thoughtfully as he watched her how she gracefully avoided Edward's first attack. "Oh – and her patience too."

"Amazing, right?" Alain smiled proudly. "She worked hard for this, of course."

Edward, however, wasn't happy at all about his actual situation. Jade was fast, much faster than him, and very agile because she had no heavy automail-leg that could keep her from moving as fast and as elegant as she wanted to. The younger alchemist found himself losing his energy considerable fast while his opponent, the annoying woman, was still up and didn't seem to get tired.

"Brother, stop this," Alphonse sighed. "You start to embarrass yourself. She has more experience."

"I'll get her down!" Edward yelled. "Honestly, there has to be a way!"

"Distract her if you want to win," Phil said lazily while he looked up from his book, "but to distract her, you would have to know her fears – which you don't know. So I agree with Alphonse: give up before my big sister beats you up. She is way too strong for you at the moment."

"I wish I was," Jade muttered, "but I am not as good in shape as I am supposed to be."

"You aren't head of the state alchemists for nothing, Jade," Phil said. "Prove why you are the boss!"

"Hey, let's make a deal out of this," Edward grinned. "Should I win, I get your position."

"And where is the reward for me should I win?" she asked. "Furthermore: I don't gamble."

"Alright, let's lower the stakes," the blond man said. "When you win, I make sure that you get a nice little surprise from Claudio … and should I win, you make Win's hair on the wedding."

"You just got yourself a deal," she grinned.

* * *

Victoria sat in the room and had her arms wrapped around herself while Nick's head rested on her lap while Elicia's head was on her shoulder. The redhead sighed deeply as she looked at Laila and Cai who leaned against the other wall while Owen lay on the floor.

"Aunty Serena surely has a way with babysitting," Victoria complained. "I wished she would have showed us some _remarkable_ alchemy tricks."

"She promised daddy that she wouldn't do this," Laila sighed. "I wished she would ignore the rule…"

"…like aunty Jade, yeah," the red-haired girl muttered. "And I am still angry that Grandfather doesn't allow me to help him with Nerissa's shoulder. I mean, I proved that I can help, right?"

"Ah, don't worry, Vicky," Owen said as he smiled at her. "I am sure that he worries about you. The last time, you went way too far and you were tired for three days afterwards … and then you nearly died when these fanatics decided that it would be cool to set the house aflame."

* * *

**AN**: Whoa, I managed to edit and improve hundred chapters so far. That makes me very happy. I would be even happier if at least one or two people might drop a few words. For the Guest who mentioned that organised sport wasn't existent until the 20th century … the story is set in the 20th century and my old sport club was founded in 1847.

Ava


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